Beautiful Stranger
by Zmeyette
Summary: The sequel to my story Young Love. Please READ YL before reading this because it'll be confusing if you won't. :D To all who already read, please READ and REVIEW!
1. Prologue

**I couldn't write a summary yet but I think these quotes will all help you figure something out. :D**

_"I think God makes more than one soul mate for every person, and the one you live your life with is just the one you met first. Yeah well, I have a problem. I met all of mine at once."_

_"The only thing I'm scared of...is that you might love him more than me." - Pearl Harbor_

**So, I decided to upload this sooner than expected because I was **_**soooooo**_** inspired by all your reviews.**

**Keep all of them coming 'cause all of you will be in for a blast.**

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**Prologue**

He stumbled on the snow and landed on his knees. He had no reason why he did it but he just felt like it.

The snow in Alaska was getting thicker and colder but he didn't notice any of those things – he couldn't think about anything else. He was numb all around but for his heart. His heart was aching so much – it yearned for something that had been lost. He couldn't let it go. It was like it was marked forever in his heart for it to bleed.

He stayed there for a while, just kneeling and breathing in the icy air, but eventually, the place around him started to light up and the sound of tires rolling with the snow sounded out of nowhere. Headlights hit his direction – the thick white snow looked kind of familiar to him but it was not what he was longing for.

A car's horn honked twice and the car stopped near the heap of body kneeling on the cold snow. The car engine's heat emanated out with the smell of metal and oil and it reminded him of the smell of leather inside a limousine. The heat was not unpleasant unlike what he was experiencing inside his heart right now.

He heard a car's door open and they were followed by slow footsteps. Black pointed shoes appeared in front of his peripheral sight accompanied by two pale pink palms. He looked up and saw cat-green eyes looking at him with concern. His realization of who she was shocked him a little in spite it all.

He _never_ thought that this woman in front of him would be concerned for somebody's welfare – especially his. But seeing her face now, so concerned, it was inevitable not to talk.

"Someone called, said you'd come." she told him and gave him a small, apologetic smile that just increased his shock.

"What am I doing here?" he tried not to show his shock in front of her but it was like she could see through every lies he made – like every other time when he visits her office.

"I don't really know." she was holding something back but he cared less.

"Why do I feel so…" he looked for a word that could describe what he was feeling right now. "…empty."

"Maybe it's just the shock." She replied and took his arms, supporting like he was disabled.

"What am I shocked about?" he asked she knew and he was not asking about his shock from her change of heart.

She shook her head. "That was what I wanted to ask you." she said as she helped him to the car. The guardian who drove the car was getting…_ his_ bags.

That was strange; he hadn't remembered that he was moving away. Where was he going? Why were his bags packed? And most of all, why was he doing outside the academy instead of being inside the safety of the wards?

He saved those questions for later – he didn't want any guardian to know that he had lost his mind.

He tried to conceal his pain and the desolation of his heart by looking out the window. It was day out but the dismal snow in Alaska made it possible for Moroi to go out. It looked like it was afternoon. The gloomy surroundings in Alaska didn't make him feel better – it was like it was keeping him company by sharing what it felt. It made him feel worse.

Why was he feeling this way? What did he lose? Did he care about something that he lost? Was he insane? He kept throwing questions at himself.

Eventually, they arrived at the academy unscathed. Seeing the academy here brought some distant flashbacks of another life.

_He ran his hands through her smooth, dark hair. He loved her hair. It felt like silk against his calloused fingers but nothing could ever compare how her lips felt against his._

Just seeing a beautiful mane of dark hair, the pain inside his chest tightened and the empty feeling came. The hollowness inside him grew slowly, eating him whole and almost getting him undone. He touched the throbbing part of his chest and inconspicuously exhaled. Trying to let the pain out but to no avail. Yes, it hurt him. Too much.

He tried to cave in his torments and made himself feel strong.

Whatever this was, he decided, it was not going to last for long.

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**Who do you think was this POV's? I know its third person but…it's a prologue so I can't unveil too much, eh?**

**REVIEW & thanks for reading. I'll UD soon when school ends. That will be in less than a week now.**

**And before I forget, what do you think about the title? The title has its own meaning so I hope you express your opinions about it in a pretty REVIEW.  
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**Love lots,**

**Kate**


	2. The Funeral

**Already posted some lists of songs for Beautiful Stranger. Please check it out. :D**

**Thanks for all the reviews. They were amazing! :D**

**Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 1**

**The Funeral**

How colorful it was. The tree's leaves danced softly around with the slow wind, fragrant wind as it played like fingers on my skin. The sun was high up so the leaves glittered as it hit those golden rays of sunlight.

I sighed in content. I knew that I wasn't into nature so much but this experience just changed my opinions about them.

I just laid there on the soft green grass, marveling at how it felt against my skin. I absently stroked the grass and hummed a random tune. My feet played in the air, twisting and stretching them around each other and I didn't dare close my eyes.

"Do you like it?" somebody with a faint Russian accent asked softly like the wind.

I was surprised but I didn't tear my eyes away from the beautiful array of colors in front of me. They were yellows, reds, plenty of oranges, and a couple of browns.

"I don't like it." I whispered and raised my hands in the air, trying to catch a falling red petal. I missed it because the breeze picked up. "_I love it_."

I felt the grass move beside me and the sound of it moving added calmness in the air. The beauty of the trees was too marvelous to take my eyes away from and the sun was like winking at me behind those clusters of leaves. The breeze blew my hair across my face – concealing my view on the mesmerizing colors of leaves. I took it as my chance to sit up and distract myself but when I did, I just found myself even more mesmerized by before.

I was in an utterly beautiful garden. It was complete with different kinds of trees, shrubs, vines, flowers, a fountain with chirping birds, butterflies, and the great view of the blue sky with puffy white clouds.

My eyes widened and my heart lurched. I wanted so badly to run around like a little girl and feel the magic around me but I kept control of my body. Besides wanting to run around the place, I couldn't say anything – I was awe-struck. I couldn't say anything about it except that it was perfect.

The way the blue sky, white clouds and golden sunlight framed the indescribable beauty of the garden, it was… like the most wonderful thing in the world. Vines of flowers climbed up on antique-looking gazebos and butterflies of different colors were abundant.

I heard someone sigh beside me and I heard the grass move again. I felt something warm touch my hand and the electric current it made was enough to make me look away from the dazzling view in front of me and jerk my gaze on my tingling hand.

I expected to see a big, tanned, muscular hand with long, calloused fingers but instead of being tanned, it looked lighter – white. I didn't know why I expected those aspects for a hand but it seemed like _the_ right thing. Yes, the hand was all the same except for its color.

I slowly looked up from that hand, seeing light, muscular wrists and toned arms and broad shoulders over a black tank top. As gradually as before, I took in his face and almost gasped at the sharp pain it made when I felt my heart leap inside my ribcage. I didn't know why my heart did it but it just did. **(Confusing, right?)**

His hair glittered under the sun in a color of brilliant chestnut and his eyes were the color of sea – green-blue under the light. But what made me gasp audibly was the scar that was on the right side of his face. It was long that cut on his forehead, over his brow, only missing his eye for an inch or two and ended on his cheekbone. It lay there, contrastingly pinkish-red over the pallor of his skin.

Again, I didn't know why but I felt…attracted to the guy.

With a pang, I realized something growing inside of me and I just had the instinct that I could never let this happen.

No, I tried to convince myself, I just… like his eyes for the hell of it all. Yeah, right, like I _only_ liked his eyes. Those muscles… it reminded me of something else, and the accent…

I felt a small tug on my chest when I mentioned all these. Whatever, I was just attracted to a beautiful-eyed stranger that has been in my dreams since the last time I could remember.

"Who are you?" I asked and narrowed my eyes slightly; the brilliance of his eyes and smile almost blinded me. Almost.

"I'm Max," he told me and he just smiled wider.

Max, not a familiar name.

"Are you stalking my dreams?" I blurted out all of a sudden and I quite regretted it. His laughter made me regret it – it was deep and throaty and it reminded me of something about… my _past_.

Oddly enough, I couldn't remember what my past was. It was just _hidden_ at the back of my head, just waiting to be unfolded.

He shook his head slowly, making a few strands of chestnut hair fly out. A look of annoyance crossed his face but it disappeared as quickly as it came. "I'm not stalking your dreams," he confirmed and he lifted his other hand that was not on my hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind my ears. I felt the same tingling electric current that I just had a while ago when he touched my hand.

"I'm not stalking your dreams," – he repeated – "I'm just here for you." While he said that, he brushed his fingers against my cheekbone and lower lip.

Begrudging it was, I felt a significant feeling of bliss pulse through me. I shivered a little as he leaned in close to me until his lips were a good three inches away from each other.

He locked his eyes with mine. "I'm going to kiss you, Rose." He whispered and and I could taste his breath on my open lips and it was so…_sweet_. "I want to take your pain away," his long, straight nose skimmed down from my cheek to my jaw. He kissed me lightly there and my heart went erratic – making it hard not to shiver. He trailed up his kisses to my cheek to the corner of my mouth, he stopped there. My body – or rather I sort of responded by turning my head to his direction and captured his lips. There was something about him that made me do it. It felt like it was binding me to do it – not in a compulsion kind of way but… it just felt like the right thing to do. For now, at the least.

I kissed his lips and he responded immediately, putting his hands on my arms and running them through my hair. I felt my hand slowly creep up from my lap to his chest then hooking it around his neck. As I did that, I could feel strength pass through me. I had my eyes closed and I couldn't see what was happening now. I did feel his hands retreat slowly and his lips left mine. The brightness of the garden faded and the last thing I saw was his eyes.

I _liked_ those eyes.

The smell of pine and flowers in the air was no more, too. I could smell a stale scent of flowers – dead ones.

My mind slowly registered what was happening. I was _awake_. It was time for Stansilav's funeral and I needed to get dressed with a depressing color of black. I have been mourning for him for two days by now – not even sleeping due to it. They had been forcing fluids and depressants inside my body because of it. They needed me to rest and, my father, Abe didn't think twice about giving me depressants just to make me rest.

My life was a wreck, too. I couldn't blame Xander – I had a vague glimpse of Lissa telling me about spirit's side effects to the user and what it does when it is "innovated" by turning into Strigoi.

Lissa had been a wreck, too, but not as much as me. Everybody already knew that she was one of the rare Moroi who, like St. Vladimir, use spirit so-and-so. Lissa had been depressed when she remembered all of the things that happened. Dr. Olendzki had prescribed her some, unlike mine, anti-depressants to help her depression. But other than those things, Lissa was okay except for a few disturbing memories. I haven't been able to check her neck since but I was quite sure that the bite marks were gone.

Can a spirit user heal her own self? I didn't know what the answer to that was but it was good because if Christian had seen that, he probably would have set the world on fire. No, seriously.

When Lissa stayed strong, I didn't. Mom had taken a week off from her charge just to make sure I didn't kill myself; Abe and his goons kept a _very_ close eye on me; Lissa and even Christian was there, too. And the last person surprised me; Alberta was there for me also. Alberta and Christian would have surprised me so much if I wasn't in a state of catatonia. Almost all of the people I cared about were there, except for one.

I had let Xander use compulsion on Dimitri just to protect him from the clutches of my evil ex-boyfriend turned Strigoi. It hadn't occurred to me that he would have survived if we fought together against Xander but the outcome could have been worse.

I had let my mind linger on the past for too long.

From now on, I would be strong and I would not jerk a single tear ever again. I was Rose Hathaway after all. Rose Hathaway was fearless, strong, and brave and she wasn't weak. But that Rose Hathaway slipped away from my able fingers and was replaced by a weak, vulnerable one.

That girl cried for the losses in her life and had weaknesses in her life which almost brought her doom. That girl was what I was now but none of those things now.

People change when they want to. I _could_ change. I _would_ change.

I quickly slipped out of the bed and disposed the dead roses that were inside my room. I caught sight of myself on a mirror and remembered that Xander had cut me on different places. I reached for the one just below my breastbone. It was not there, not even a faint scar or any sign that I had been hurt there. I looked at my wrist and arm with the same outcome – there were no more scars. I even almost died in blood loss because of it. Something else at the back of my head kept prodding me to remember something before I passed out at the palace's clearing. I coasted through my memories. Xander and I fought, he died, Stas did too, Dimitri left with Lissa… and something else. Something about a scar.

My mind fogged the memory and I groaned in frustration as I pushed through those memories. There was a guy. Yeah, a guy with a scar on the right side of his face but it was covered with a swanky mask. Was it _The Phantom of the Opera_? I thought over my conclusion and couldn't help but to snort out a little laughter.

I didn't know why but I just felt…_ lighter_.

Surprised and eager by my mood, I bounded up and I saw that there was a note on the mirror with my name on it. I wondered what it was. The penmanship didn't look familiar to me but I read it.

_Take your time._

_Abe_

_P.S. Dress at your closet._

Was I a Barbie guinea pig now? Abe had been letting me dress up ever since I had mentioned about the ball. Not that I didn't like it – I loved it. I would have laughed at that but my mood was just light so it wouldn't be good if I laugh at myself where no-one else was around. That would be a sign that I was turning into a real mad woman.

I let my curiosity win and I opened my small closet door, there was a plain white box that lay there with a black ribbon on top of the lid. It was addressed to me.

I snatched the box's lid away and smiled at what I saw.

Of course, it was all black because I had to wear it in a funeral. Seeing the dress, I couldn't help but compare it to Katy Perry's vintage attire in her music video Thinking of You to this modernized frock dress, peep-toe shoes, fascinator, and the red rose that lay on top of everything. It still looked fresh so maybe it wasn't long they put it here.

They better were waiting for me. If they're not, I'll… _cut off their allowances_. Yeah, right. I was sure that they wouldn't leave me. I saw that just below the dress was make-up. Of course, the Italian sisters would never let me leave if I was without make-up.

Ironic it was, I chuckled to myself and barely thought of my luck.

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I stayed outside of the chapel while the mass started. Father Andrew was one of Stansilav's favorite people here in school so I thought if he led it; it would make him a little happy. Seems kind of impossible when a person is dead but it was all I could give now. He had nothing left to lose now but even in death, a person could gain something in his liking.

The academy was on a two-week vacation from all of those that happened during the ball. Many were traumatized even when they were just turned into sleeping zombies. I _knew_ that Kirova wasn't that nice to offer an early vacation so I thought Abe had his fair share of silently announcing to the academy his "get well soon" greetings.

It was the early vacation's third day and almost all the students were out with their families now except for some dhampir novices.

While I let my mind wander, I just stood there and looked down at the red rose I would give to my beloved brother as my one, last gift. As I knew far too well, his favorite flower was rose – especially red ones. I had another vague glimpse of Stansilav speaking out his feelings for me subtly.

"_I'd love to keep a red, red rose in my life." Stas told me and looked at me. His gaze was warm just like the weather now. The expression in his eyes was unfathomable – it was so deep but then again, he's turning into a guardian, he should be unreadable. "What's your favorite flower?" he asked me and trailed his fingertips on the tip of my nose._

_I made a face but didn't push his hand away. I was used to his touches by now – it made me feel kind of safe. "Isn't it obvious?"_

_He slightly pulled back. "You know what I mean."_

Sometimes he was just as mysterious as Xander – leaving things hidden and just making it go with the flow. But things happen when you just let it be and just let time tell you your fate. _"Everything will be revealed in due time, Rose" _those were the words he'd said to me and it time concluded it as his death. I should have been able to stop Xander from killing him.

I thought better of my thoughts. If I was going to be the old Rose Hathaway now, why would I blame myself? _It was not my fault_. It was destined to come anyway, all those plans were from the guy up above us and we cannot stop that no matter what. I was angered by how close I was to breaking down again but I had a new-found strength that I haven't had before.

The aggregation inside listened to Father Andrew and I just absently stroked the rose's velvety red petal. At long last, the aggregation dispersed but they didn't get out yet.

"Rose," Lissa's voice cut through my wandering thoughts.

I looked at her and saw that her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy – she looked like she had been crying and tired. But other than that, she looked beautiful as always. She wore a black lace mini dress and ankle-length boots. Her platinum blonde hair was in a neat ponytail and she had a little fascinator, too.

"How are you?" she asked me with a small, sad smile.

I gave her my convincing smile. "I'm alright, Liss,"

Even without our bond, I could still feel Lissa's sadness and uneasiness. Our years of friendship had helped that.

"Is it really gone, Rose?" she asked in a very small voice. Her eyes were about to shed tears but she swallowed them back, willing herself not to cry. I already knew what she meant – she still couldn't wrap her mind around our broken bond. It was like our life never existed when we were not bonded, she had said.

I frowned at her and nodded slowly. "Believe it, Lissa," I said in barely a whisper. "It's really gone,"

I heard her sniffle and the next thing I knew, she was hugging me so tightly it was like I couldn't breathe. Her medications didn't help much about her emotional reactions because, as I could see, she still cried like a baby.

"Ssshhh…" I hushed her while I stroked her straight ponytail. "It's alright, Lissa," I reassured her.

I didn't know how long we stayed there but the next thing I knew that Christian was there, calming Lissa down and people streamed out of the small chapel with a white casket. They had always said that white was the true color of death but it really made no sense. I looked away from it in a melodramatic way.

It still hurt to look at Stansilav's death bed.

I followed Lissa and Christian to our car while the others took care of the casket.

Eventually, we rode slowly up higher to the mountains while I watched the sun start to set.

I was riding with Lissa, Christian, Aleksandra and Andrea. Of course, Andrea was bawling her eyes out and Andrea patted her shoulder for sign of sympathy. Not that I saw those happening but I just had a good impression that that was what Aleksandra would do.

For about another fifteen minutes, I just stared at the window. We were headed to the academy's private cemetery in a more secluded place in the mountains where no humans could find them. When we arrived, it was large and dismal. It was like seeing through an old black and white movie. The effects were added by the stone that served as mementos.

I opened the car's door as soon as it stopped on the rusted wrought-iron gate. I could see that there was already a hole in the ground for _something I didn't want to think about_. I walked to the hole slowly, the cemented pavement was dirty and uneven but I managed to get there unscathed.

And then like that, everything went fast forward. They were now rolling down Stansilav's casket while I watched it go deeper to the ground. I still held the red rose in my hand. Everybody but a few has left to their car now except for a few. I closed my eyes, taking one deep breath before opening them up again. I took one, last look at Stansilav's repository and I couldn't hold back the tear that leaked out from the corner of my eye. I closed my eyes again and kissed the rose's petal. More tears streamed out.

_Bye Stas,_ I said silently, I couldn't trustmy voice enough to say something loudly. _I'll miss you so much_, I couldn't exaggerate myself by saying _I'll miss you more than anything_ because even when Stansilav died, I'll still miss Dimitri more.

_Time passes and heals_; I repeated to myself and dropped the rose to his bed.

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**So, tell me what you think. Who's Max?**

**I'll squeeze in more time to update.**

**Please leave a REVIEW.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate**


	3. Variant

**Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been able to UD so soon but I had my exams and my mom wouldn't**

**let me use the laptop during weekdays.**

**Hope you all understand.**

**ENJOY  
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**Chapter 2**

**Variant **

**DPOV**

I was strong. I was very strong and nothing could stop me.

I kept punching and pounding on the battered punching bag in front of me. I just continued, not aware of everything else except for the thing in front of me that was now barely holding on the rope that was keeping it up. I did it over and over and over again, gathering my strength in the process but he didn't slow down. When I had the momentum, I gave one hard punch on the physically castigated bag and it went flying away and I kicked it in mid air. It fell noisily but I didn't bother to look at it.

I proceeded to another punching bag and did the same. It held on longer than the recent punching bag but it swung back and forth faster. I ignored the searing pain my knuckles made and just punched harder than before. With that, I let all my anger, confusion… everything out. I just let all of what I was feeling now pour out because I didn't want to cry. I didn't _need_ to cry. I just needed to do _this_. Let it all out.

I didn't know how long I just abused the poor punching bag there but it was a while. Eventually, someone would notice that what I was doing was something hysterical and not a usual training. Yes, somebody did. I didn't know who restrained me but _he_ was strong. It was a guardian. The guardian grabbed my shoulders roughly and pinned my wrists at my back. I should have put up a great fight but I had a impression that I was needed somewhere.

"The Headmistress wants to see you," That was when I noticed that the one restraining him was the Headmistress's guardian. Her personal guardian. I didn't bother to form a question about why he was the one looking for me instead of guardians in the academy. This meeting must be important to her or somewhat.

We made our way to the Headmistress's office, making many heads and brows rise from our wake.I was still a little sweaty and slick from my earlier "workout." But I didn't care about what people thought about me now; the only heart of _my_ matter was a thing I actually forgot. Or maybe it was just erased from my memory. I had hoped that the feeling inside me would fade in no time but it just got worse than before, so to say.

Or maybe I was, somehow, compelled to forget. Who would do that? And _why_? Those questions had gone unanswered ever since I got that probable idea.

The Headmistress's guardian and I pushed ourselves through her door's office. We were welcomed by snow. Unusual it was, we found the Headmistress looking out at her drawn drapes' show. The snow fell slowly to the ground and just from the glass frame; I could see arrays of birch trees. The Headmistress turned around with a calm look on her face and the white-blond of her hair just added more effect to it. She looked like she belonged there, outside with the snow.

"Mister Belikov," the Headmistress started and gestured for me to take a seat. I moved quietly as I sat down. I just looked at the snow that fell outside the window; it made me feel, somehow, at peace. I heard the Headmistress take a deep breath and she took a seat. Her pen clicked. I registered all those things like I would in any insignificant ones.

"I have been expecting you for a while now," she said in a quiet tone. "How is your neck?"

I thought that her question was unexpected from her but then again, all things she was doing _for_ me now were all unexpected. I shrugged, indifferent.

"It's fine." I had been going out of the academy for numerous of times. Either it was for school purposes or the Headmistress's offers for me. And every time, we always cross paths with Strigoi. I, now, had six marks on my neck. The ceremony had just been held a few days ago and but it seemed like it was a millennium of years ago. But what surprised me the most was that the Headmistress had given me the promise marks. I was only a novice but I got the _real molnija_ marks. I didn't make a foofaraw about it but just accepted it with the honor that came along with what all people talk about. Even with my situation now, I still feel like a criminal when I kill Strigoi. All of them used to be Moroi, dhampir or human. It was a waste but it was something I had to do.** (Vaguely quoting at VA) **Maybe it was just a way my mind reminds me of a remembered past. Albeit a horrible one.

"I have been thinking," the Headmistress said and she rested her hands in front of her on the desk. "about sending you off again." I could see there was a little sadness there in her eyes but it disappeared quickly. I noticed too that there was an _again_ there. I didn't question her but just listened to what she was about to say. "I expected a recovery of you from the past tragic events that happened to you but I couldn't help but doubt that I had made those things worse than it already was." She looked into my eyes intensely. It was not the kind of look that she gives me when she was applying compulsion but it was the kind that she was trying to peer inside of me.

Finally, the Headmistress looked doubly defeated. "He called again."

I looked at the Headmistress in surprise. I knew who _he _was and it made my mind wander to some things.

"He asked how you were." I was surprised that the Headmistress sounded stubborn. I could imagine her furrowing her forehead and her brows coming in as a one line. "Anyway, besides that, you are an excel novice here and I think you surpass other guardians' capabilities in your work as the protector of Moroi. I was considering about sending you back to your family in –"

"Not in Baia, no." I cut her off. I loved my family dearly but the thought of living again with the memories about killing my sister was making it harder than it was before. The hollow feeling on my chest constricted like it had nothing left to even lose.

The Headmistress looked at him, considering some points. Seconds later, she nodded slowly. "But you do not want to stay here?"

I thought about that with further analysis. If I were to stay here and move on _in here_, it would be practically impossible. I wanted to really _move on_, literally and intellectually.

"What would happen to me being a guardian if I decide to not stay here?"

"Nothing will happen. Even the Queen herself cannot pull you out from the future ahead of you with those kills." – she sighed – "And I understand your situation fairly well, Dimitri." _Was she serious about understanding me? And did she just call me by my first name?_ The main question was: _Why does she understand my moping around without any reason?_ I didn't voice out my thoughts but I just nodded to her.

As if she read a dormant part of my mind, she asked, "You're going to him, are you not?"

I considered it far too deeply than I would in anything. It didn't sound half that bad an idea to go visit a… a _relative_.

"I had heard that he has been into a military school in Russia than came back to the US." The Headmistress mused. "He is a very brave young man; he's the last of his family and still lives out their glory days." Her green eyes locked on mine. "Maybe it comes from the genes." She smiled suddenly. It was weird for her to do so but I registered all of this. "You should be proud of him; those kinds of Moroi are rare."

When I didn't say anything, she continued. "Nowadays, Moroi are always cowering behind their guardians. Always _dependent_. As I had heard, for a man in such a young age, he handles life very well." She regained her composure and the faint light of excitement in her eyes faded and turned business-like again. "He will be happy to hear from you."

I just nodded for her to continue. So far, this was the longest speech I had ever heard from her.

"You should be proud of him." She repeated. "Only a handful of Moroi – royals, in particular – are like that." She sighed again and I could see a wondering expression in her eyes. She looked slightly dazed. "So, have you made your decision?"

"Yes." I replied.

"What will it be?"

I stood up from the chair and looked down at Headmistress Vladescu.

"I'm sure he misses his brother now." **(A/N: in this plot, Dimitri's father didn't beat up Dimka's mom, okay? So, no grudges are held against Dimka's dad.)**

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**RPOV**

"It has been a very long two days now, Stas." I said as I looked up at the grayish-blue sky in front of me. I was lying down on the grass beside Stansilav's gravestone and it has been nearly an hour that I was here talking to nobody actually.

I sighed and put a hand on his gravestone. "It's just you and me now, buddy. Everybody has left now. Abe said he had some important meeting back at Turkey and guess what?" I sat up from the grass and looked at his gravestone, practically gushing. I found that act as a symptom of "deranged mind syndrome." Funny. "He offered me to go with him to Istanbul," I smiled a little at that memory. Abe was a great father, he was overprotective, yes, but he wasn't like mom who holds everything back. Mom knew enough of me that I would and could recover soon but it didn't stop her from offering me to go with her to Nepal when I declined Abe's invitation. It surprised me so much that I thought I only imagined those things.

"Even sardonic Christian invited me to their beach house in Paris." I thought about the exact place he had said. "I think the name was Nice?" it came out as a question, not a fact. I only thought that Christian had done that for Lissa's sake since I was not really into all these stuff now. The beach sounded tempting but I couldn't leave Montana now. Not when a very good friend of mine just died, I was not about to go out there and have as much fun as I could._ And_ maybe Paris was probably snowing at this time of month, so no-no to the beach. I felt responsible to look after Stansilav. Even just for his grave.

"I wonder how Dimitri is doing now." Now that I mentioned it, the yearning part of me revived itself. I was really not used to feeling this way but I just felt so, so alone right now. Yet, I didn't regret declining the former invitations made. It kind of made some sense to _be_ alone right now when I needed to recover from those past events.

It was now mid-way through the afternoon and the autumn air was freezing. I was glad I wore the clothes Aleksandra and Andrea had bought me. Yes, the sisters bought me clothes in courtesy of Abe's kindness. Some of them were actually custom-made, not that it surprised me really.

The air around me swept and it made me glad that I had my hair in a braid because if they weren't they would have been looking more like a haystack than a beautiful mane. Despite the annoying velocity of the breeze, it seemed to tell me something. The wind smelled unusually fragrant instead of smelling like stagnant air. It was cold, yes, but in a good way. **(A/N: Rose's clothes' pics are on my profile)**

I shivered inside my jacket and put my hands on my cheeks to warm my face up. I could see faint clouds my breath made when I exhale and that was just a sign that it was not a reasonable temperature to be hanging out in an isolated cemetery. I rolled down my jacket's sleeves and hugged my knees to my chest awkwardly.

It was fall and the leaves were all in many shades of red, oranges, browns and other and it kind of reminded me of something.

"You know, Stas," – I continued – "I get some of these dreams and it's not like normal ones that gets stuck with you for a few seconds after waking up but… they are really easy to forget. But sometimes I get these weird glimpses of…" I thought about those cloudy things my mind reached. "…of _plants_."

I snorted at myself and moved my arms on my legs to my chest. "I know, it sounds crazy." I muttered and got up to my feet stiffly and dusted off bits of dirt and grass that clung to my new clothes.

I sighed and the cloud my breath made was more visible now.

"I should go. It's very cold and it's going to get dark soon." I said to no-one actually. Now, I really felt stupid. Did anybody talk in a cemetery all be herself. The answer was no, only me.

Realizing how petty I had been, I stomped off to the exit gate. It only took me about half an hour to walk up here and it served as my daily exercise. I practically marched off like a soldier to the dirt path where it led back to the academy.

I was a little dismayed that I didn't wear boots; the cold seemed to seep in through the chucks I was wearing. My hands were inside my coat's pocket because I wasn't really expecting a sudden weather change today. Dhampirs were mostly immune to the weather but this was just too damn cold for me to handle. Luckily, I had a beret that kept my head warm from the freezing weather.

As I walked in the cold woods, just following the fair-sized dirt path, I couldn't help but notice how eerie everything was. There was no wind now but it was cold; there was no sound except for my breathing and footsteps but it seemed everything around me was loud and blatant; there was no one in the area but I got the feeling of being watched when I was halfway down to the academy.

_You're just imagining things, Rose,_ I told myself but I couldn't help but put in a silent _again_ to that.

I continued to walk, pretending to be oblivious to my overly imaginative mind. I kept my eyes straight in front of me and marched. I ignored all the slight movements leaves made when a breeze passes by. My heart was beating hard too and for all I know, it could be heard in China. For no reason at all, now I felt like running. Goosebumps covered my arms and the hairs on the back of my neck stood at its end. I ignored that weird sense and convinced myself it was because of the temperature drop that was causing all these reactions.

I didn't realize that I was now near the academy's iron gates when I saw a black Jaguar XF pull up just inches away from me. Or rather I did. I stopped; I couldn't move or even move a muscle to breathe in air to survive. Well, I think that might be a good thing, considering that I'll humiliate myself for almost crashing with a car due to my absent-mindedness.

I could see that my reflection on the tinted windshield matched what I was feeling now. I looked kind of pissed but mostly embarrassed. I was too busy keeping up a straight face to even notice that there was a tall guy looking at me. As I could see from the corner of my eye, he was leaning on the car's open door and he was wearing dark sun glasses so I couldn't see his eyes. I dragged my eyes away from the windshield and looked at the guy.

I was a bit taken aback and I don't know why I was.

"You do realize that you were about to walk over the car." He said and I could see a smile playing on the corner of his lips.

I nearly scowled and retorted but I didn't. Slowly, I drank him in. He had a color of warm chestnut brown for a hair and he was tall. _Very _tall. Almost as tall as my – I'd still like to prefer – my Russian god. Just under those glasses, I could see a pinkish-red line on one side of his face.

He looked pretty familiar to me.

* * *

**CLIFFIE! **

**Who's the guy with the cool car?**

**Who was looking at Rose in the woods?**

**You'll find out more soon.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate**

**P.S. Not to worry about Dimka alright?**


	4. Seaglass Green

**You'd be glad I stopped there yesterday. **

**As usual, I do not own Vampire Academy but I wish I did.**

**Enjoy the chapter.  
**

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**Chapter Three**

**Sea-Glass Green**

"Who the hell are you?" I applied some attitude over my chagrin. Despite the cold air, I felt my face warm up.

The guy in front of me just smiled wider and I could see his fangs now. It wasn't like Xander's tusk-like ones which were long and pointed but his were ordinary. It wasn't scary to look at.

"I am Lord Romanov, and you must be Rose Hathaway, Ibrahim's daughter?" he asked and still didn't take off his glasses. I squinted a little but it was too heavily tinted to see through them even with my enhanced dhampir vision.

"You _do_ have a first name, right? Or is it just Lord?" I asked, trying to raise one brow up like Dimitri always did. Of course, I failed in doing so.

His laugh bounced up and about the air around us. It was so melodic and just with a laugh; his accent seemed to be more pronounced there. He looked amused for the hell of it all. "Maxim is my first name, _Rose_." The way he said my name… it made me feel – I don't know – better?

"And, may I ask, what are you doing here outside the academy's gates and not at your palace somewhere?" I asked him, putting more Rose Hathaway bravado to him. I was still embarrassed as hell and I didn't like that. He should have made a more convenient parking space for his car inside the academy.

"And may I ask what are you doing walking around like a blind woman _outside the academy's gates_?" Normally, I would have been offended or insulted by this but instead, a bubble of laughter came out of my lips. I didn't know why but I just felt something was funny here. Maybe it was the way _Maxim_ answered my questions with questions.

"Funny," I could still hear the sarcasm dripping off my voice. Yes, I was laughing in a genuine way but I couldn't seem but just to put in that Rose Hathaway bravado I had perfected so long ago. "Very funny," I said, stopped laughing, scowled and marched off. Leaving him.

I heard a car's door close and heavy footsteps. "Hey Rose, wait!" he called and his voice really reminded me of Dimitri's. I made a face and continued to walk away from him. Before I even made my way to the gate, he caught my wrist and a flash of electricity and heat shot through me. As if he felt it too, he let my hand go. I stayed there, the awkward silence growing.

"What do you want and why do you know Abe?" I asked, cutting off the silence minutes later. I wasn't really sure who this guy is but I think he gives me the creeps… good ones. _What the fuck?_

"I'm here to check if he was still here." He said and swallowed, pursing his lips after.

"You – the _Lord_ – is here _alone_ in the middle of the wilderness trying to find a foreign mob boss?" I asked in incredulity. I found it hard to believe that a Moroi – a royal one, especially – could leave their house without a guardian. I kind of checked him out at that moment too.

He was _really_ tall. And as rare as it is for a Moroi, he had bulk. Lots of it. His skin was obviously pale but I think it was a little tanned despite their aversion to sunlight. He raised his hand slowly to his face, then to his dark sunglasses. I almost jumped on my toes from anticipation but I regained composure of myself. I was not about to show _anything_ to this guy that that was not in Rose bravado.

Slowly, like a non-gay super model, he took off his glasses and first all I could see was the ethereal color of sea. I realized seconds later that I was staring at him like a total moron and I blinked, trying to recover. I couldn't put a finger on it but something about his features and the way I felt with him seemed nostalgic. I didn't quite like it.

"I can take care of myself." He told me and marched to the academy's gate, gesturing me to follow him. I cautiously tailed behind him and from his back, he really looked like my Russian god. I couldn't help but muse. I made a face again and held my chin high. I would change. Any minute now, I would. Yeah, right.

As soon as I caught sight of him, he was looking at me. An expression of concern played on his face and his bluish-green eyes were kind of worried. Don't ask me why he was looking so worried but he held out one gloved hand to me.

"Come here, Rose." He said and gave me a small smile. I hid a scowl and resisted the urge to take his offered hand. I gave him the cold shoulder and preceded to the dhampir dorms. Of course, he followed me to where I was going. I turned around, putting on an outraged face. "What are you a stalker now?" I bellowed at him and I could hear birds flying out of the trees. I didn't take my eyes away from him. Oooh, why did he have to be so damn gorgeous and infuriating?

I could hear him chuckle lowly and it reminded me of Dimitri again. I took a deep breath started to run. I expected to outrun him but, boy, Moroi were fast when they wanted to be. He caught up easily to me and I picked up my pace. He matched mine. I felt a weird sense of déjà vu where Dimitri and I were doing our laps together. Just that first day we met.

And this was the first day we met. The so-called Lord Maxim Romanov and I met. I was disbelieving that I was comparing someone else to Dimitri in such short notice. Practically, I would have scratched my eyes out for doing so but imagining the fear of pain made it much worse. Lissa and I may not have our bond now but I still had this frighteningly hot temper. It didn't make any difference though. It was just like I was still bonded to her because I had this same pull to spirit. The only person I knew who used spirit was just Lissa so maybe she was calling out to me. I mentally shrugged at that and pointedly ignored the guy beside me.

When _we_ got to the novice dorms' steps, he still followed. I made my way to my room's door and he still followed. I was about to kick this stalker's butt but instead of that, I asked, "What are you doing in the academy?" I was surprised at how civilized I sounded. It was the only politeness I could muster up.

I leaned on my room's door and looked at him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I'm here to grant someone's request." He said softly and his eyes… grr, I _hate_ how those eyes do things to me.

"And who is that someone?" I gave him a fake smile and the sarcasm on my voice dripped like venom from a snake.

His eyes turned soft all of a sudden and… I, too, felt lighter and my hard head softened a little. Well, that was weird. Maybe this guy does weird voodoo magic or I was just turning into a mad woman or I was starting to get attracted… nah, I'd rather he did voodoo or I was just suffering from my newly discovered mental illness "deranged mind syndrome."

"Ibrahim Mazur." THAT NAME AGAIN. I SWEAR IF I EVER SEE ABE AGAIN, I WOULD BE THE ONE BLASTING HIS KNEE CAPS AND NO ONE COULD STOP ME FROM DOING IT. I didn't know how he found my dire contemplating but from the slightly wary look on his face, I think that I looked kind of scary.

"And I thought you were here to meet him." I muttered darkly.

"Sorry I lied." He gave me a small, contrite smile and I couldn't resist rolling my eyes.

"What was his 'request'?" I asked him, still on the dark side.

"He wanted me to come here and pick you up."

"Huh?" I asked brilliantly.

"_He wanted me to come here and pick you up._" He toned up his volume and leaned in close as he said those.

"Why did he want you to come here and pick me up?" As if I didn't know.

"I don't know but I rather follow your father's orders." He said nonchalantly and he leaned away from me. "Pack your clothes up, we're about to hit the road." He ordered.

The dark feeling inside me burst. "Who the hell died and made him God?" Actually, Stas died. Not that Stas made orders to me.

I saw him wince a little and he just gave me a small apologetic smile. "Your father's orders." Was all he said and pointed at his watch. It meant that the clock was ticking. I didn't believe that he really felt sorry for me. He was just one of those royals who wanted to get me off my clothes. But Abe wouldn't dare assign that to a person who just wants to sleep with his daughter, right?

I felt my jaw drop in disbelief but I managed to close it before the drool would come out. I stomped inside my room and got some things. While I packed, I grumbled about "overprotective fathers," "stupid Moroi walking out of the wards' protection," and a little about "how stupid I could be for obeying Abe's orders." Better be stupid than sorry though. I packed about half the things Aleksandra and Andrea had brought me and I grabbed a duffle bag and stuffed them inside. I finished packing in record time and I got out of the room, still leaving my bags.

I poked my head out of my door and saw that he was standing on the glass window just at the side of the hallway. I hadn't noticed that the view there was breathtaking. It was wonderful, the color of autumn filled the place and the big tree branch had a rope tied to it. There was tire swing there and it made me wonder if that was still new or old. Maxim turned around to look at me with a small smile. His face resembled strongly to my not so long-lost lover and it just made avoiding him much harder.

"Are you done?" he asked me and his voice unusually soothed me. It was just like what I felt with Dimitri when he spoke so softly…

"Where are we going anyway?" I ignored the out-of-it's-mind part of my brain and just concentrated on living a second more to another. I would be lucky if I'd be alive tomorrow with this _annoying_ royal. No, he was not annoying actually and that was what annoyed me more. I know, I don't really make any sense right now and I probably never will.

"Off to the palace."

"Where's that palace?"

"Don't pretend that you don't know where that is." He told me knowingly. I was hoping that he didn't live at that big palace some place in Hobson but he actually lived there. Many memories palyed back but I put them at the back of my mind, mildly chastising myself for lingering at the past.

"What are you with the palace's owner?" I asked and stepped outside of the door because I felt a little stupid that I was just sticking my head out on the door.

He gave me a questioning look and seemed to regain his wits again. "I_ am_ the owner."

I raised my brows. He looked too young to own that big a palace but being rich and royal made wonders. I sighed and eased myself up a bit. He was a nice guy and I didn't want to act like he was evil incarnate. He just looked like Dimitri, I'll give him that. I got back inside my room, took my bags and turned off the lights and locked the door shut. He was there and he helped me carry my bags. I didn't need to ask any permission from Kirova now because we were on vacation. As soon as we passed by the gate and he was loading my bags on his car, I thought about my times back at the palace.

It was saddening, as usual. I didn't really want to go back there but I felt like a coward if I refused to go there. Rose Hathaway was _not_ a coward. She had no fear.

"Loosen up, Rose," Maxim said as soon as we buckled in our seats. His car smelled like leather and his aftershave. "The palace is not that evil as you think it is." _Yeah, but I think you are_.

I just nodded and put on my new iPod's earphones on to drown away everything else.

* * * * *

I didn't know I had been asleep but the next thing I knew was a guy with a scar on his face and bright bluish-green eyes were in front of my face.

"Rose, wake up. We're here now." He told me and I bolted up from my sitting position. We almost banged our heads together but he was fast to avoid it. I regained my wits quickly and I looked around. The sun was already setting and I could see a familiar faded golden fountain in front of a huge palace.

I groaned and rubbed my eyes with my hands. I didn't want to get up yet but I too didn't want to stay in the car when we were already here at the palace. I was tired and sleepy and I just noticed that today.

"Come on, Rose, I'll take you to your room and you can sleep there." He told me in a soft tone.

"'kay," I absently grabbed my purse on my lap and pushed my iPod inside. I didn't notice the things around me because I was too sleepy to. Eventually, I ended up in a soft and comfortable bed and I dozed off.

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**Sorry, Rose needed some sleep so she could regain her strength again. I'll be updating tomorrow, I guess. **

**How do you find the story so far?**

**AND who's Maxim Romanov, guys? LOL**

**Please leave a REVIEW if you want me to continue.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate :D  
**


	5. Moving On

**Don't worry; it's only two weeks before my summer vacation here in the PH so you know what that means.**

**Enjoy and love you all. :D**

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**Chapter Four**

**Moving On**

**DPOV**

A knock on my door interrupted my wandering thoughts. It had been a day since the Headmistress offered me the freedom and I had been thinking a lot about it. If I was about to go to my long-lost brother, there would be no turning back on that.

I sighed loudly and opened the door. It was a guardian I didn't know and he was holding a note.

"This came in today," he said and gave the letter to me and swiftly walked away.

I closed the door behind me and noticed that the letter was from Russia. Siberia, for sure. I quickly opened the letter and saw that it was from babushka. The letter was short:

_To find your salvation, you should depart from your present and take what life offers you._

The letter was unexpected. Maybe she had another dream? I didn't know how but I know that she was trying to tell me to take up the Headmistress's offer and… and what? Go to where?

…_take what life offers you_.

Those last five words said it all. _Take what life offers you_, it was telling me to go – to move on so I could find this so-called "salvation" of mine. A second of pensiveness passed and I started to walk to the Headmistress's office. I would confirm her offer. I would accept it. I didn't bother knocking when I got there.

"Mister Belikov," Headmistress Vladescu raised her head from her papers.

"I'll accept your offer." I told her and she half-way smiled.

The Headmistress got up from her place and started opening drawers that contained papers. She idly told me about what to do; go to the secretary and fill up some necessary things. She already booked a plane to where I would be going. I think that she had done those things before because _maybe_ she knew that I would accept the offer.

"Guardian Alexandrov will be escorting you to the airport." She would have only let me use the academy's jet but I wasn't the academy's student anymore so I shouldn't push my luck.

"I wish you well, Dimitri. The academy would be colorless without you." She said to me before I got out of her office.

I nodded at her. "I know."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I spent the ten hours of travelling to my destination just looking out the window and thinking further about Yeva's letter. As always, she was one mysterious woman but I understood her message now, finally.

When I was out of the airport, I braced myself for the cold weather here. It was the middle of November and the weather here was starting to get colder like no other places except Alaska. It wasn't still snowing but the air seemed to be coming from the mountains because it was _very_ cold even though I, as a dhampir, was immune to some weather changes.

I went straight to the car rentals with my bag but I was stopped to see a chauffeur holding out a white board with my name written on it. Full name written on it. I was tempted to ditch the chauffeur but my conscience couldn't handle it. I walked straight to him and the chauffeur seemed to notice me and he bowed.

I always get annoyed when they do this but I think I have to get used to it because I would be living with this "brother" of mine for some time of my miserable days. Hopefully, I would find the one I was searching for. Either it would be the peace or the… _girl_.

A girl, I repeated inside my head. What did it mean?

I deeply contemplated that while the chauffeur drove me to my destination. We were riding in a stretch limousine (again) and it had the same flag with the family's crest. It had been almost ten years since I last saw this "brother" of mine. My biological father had been kind enough to introduce me to his Moroi, family – which only consisted with his son –though I was reluctant to meet him. He invited me when I was in the academy in Siberia to go with him to his family and I didn't have the guts to disagree then. He brought me to a royal palace and I could remember clearly that it was his family's palace. My father had died after a Strigoi attack and the only left in the royal family were me, my sisters and our half-brother. We were not really purely royal but our father seemed to say that it was special. _Special my ass_.

The only news I got from my half-brother was that he had gone into military school and is now improving his nearly-lost family reputation. His family had been heirs of Queens and Kings in the royal court but when they were assassinated, it turned out to be their biggest downfall.

After our father died, the connection between my half-brother became complicated to nonexistent. Due to that, my mother transferred me to another academy in Alaska. Until this time, he still remembered me. It wasn't really much of a surprise to me because I always had the impression that he knew everything.

I had my book with me and I started to read it. The ride to the palace took about four hours at most but it was quick when I had something to do. Reading with my book seemed to ease some of the loneliness I felt but it was not enough.

We stopped in front of the palace's gate and I could now see that the palace has been renovated into a more modern look but it still had its Baroque essence. It wouldn't be the same if it wasn't like that. The guardian on the front gate let us in and the chauffeur drove through the grand pathway where grass and trees sided.

The palace was beautiful as always. When we got to the front of the palace, there were maids in uniform. Great, just great – note the sarcasm. They got my bags for me and a pale and skinny butler welcomed me.

"We are sorry to say that our young master is not here, your heir. But he sent us a message that you will visit the palace." The butler told me with a slight bow. "He has been expecting you for a while now."

"It's alright." I told him. "Where is he anyway?"

"Off to some business. He will be back before winter comes." The butler replied.

I nodded to him in dismissal. Even for the years I haven't been in here, I could still remember where my favorite place in the palace was. It was at the far back of the palace. I used to stay there when I wanted to be alone. I took my book with me and set off to the forest-like garden that was my refuge. It surprised me that the garden still hasn't changed. I went deeper into the trees and alas, I found what I was looking for. The iron bench looked like it was untouched since I was there. The place looked so exquisite with the surrounding's pleasant autumn colors it nearly fed my senses, filling up the empty place in my chest. Nearly, just nearly.

I brushed off some leaves and folded myself on the bench with my book in hand. It was cold outside but I was immune to these weather changes. I started reading my Western novel and pictured peace.

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**RPOV**

~*xXx*~

I couldn't believe it. The love of my life, Dimitri, was in front of me. I locked up, I couldn't do anything but stare at those dark, dark eyes that I loved so much. My heart skipped a beat and it picked up its pace. I imagined throwing myself into his strong arms but I just stayed there. I looked at him. He hadn't change except maybe for his height. He was even taller than I remembered. His eyes seemed to tell me something aside from the void.

Slowly, I felt myself regain control of my body. I swallowed loudly and raised my hand as if to touch him. He was more than a meter away from me so it was useless. I dropped my hands back to my side. He didn't do anything but just stared at me too.

"Dimitri," I whispered, my voice was so full of wistfulness. I started to step toward him but it was like there was an invisible wall separating us. I tried to step again but I couldn't. I started to panic a little that maybe Dimitri was in danger and I started banging on the invisible thing that was keeping me away from him. "Dimitri!" I screamed but it was useless. My scream just jumped back and forth at where I was. I didn't know where I was but there were trees. Lots of them.

"Dimitri, can you hear me?!" I banged on the invisible glass and it wasn't long that I started to punch it.

And it all came rushing back in.

The depression. The hurt. The feeling of desolation, melancholy, and anguish. I almost came undone but I held on to sanity. I clutched each side of my head and shook my head.

_This isn't true, you're just having a nightmare_, I told myself. _I'm strong, I'm brave, I can get through this_, I chanted over and over again.

I looked up at me slowly, he was still there and I just waited for the next thing to come. I already knew what would happen next. Xander would appear and slit his throat, just like what he did with Stas. This nightmare had been haunting me since that day after I killed Xander permanently. And when Dimitri left and Stas was announced as legally dead.

"No, no, no," I repeated over and over again and I could now see Xander sneaking up behind him. It wasn't Xander though, it was somebody else. He wasn't looking at Dimitri but he looked at me with worry. His unusual bluish-green eyes looked guilty and sorry. Next thing I knew was everything disappeared right in front of my eyes. Including Dimitri.

~*xXx*~

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**Very short chapter, I know. I think it's the crappiest one so far.**

**I was in a hurry. :D**

**I'll UD soon.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate**


	6. Five: Good God, Rose

**Please everyone, don't hate Maxim. He's not a stalker or other things you call him. He has an important role here in BS so bear with me.**

**Sorry to update not-so ASAP; I've been sick and mom's blaming the laptop. Says that I **_**always **_**stick my eyes on the screen that's why I've been having these chronic headaches.**

**So, aside from my so-called sucky life, I hope you'll enjoy this short chapter. **

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**Chapter Four**

**Good God, Rose**

"Rose, Rose!" somebody was shaking my shoulders. It took me a while to gain my presence of mind and realized that I had just been screaming my lungs out. I opened my eyes quickly and stopped shrieking. I saw _those _eyes. The blue-green ones that I had recently seen but my freaking memories were short-lived. I think I had short-term memory loss or whatnot.

The look on his face was a bit panicked and the concern there made me want to hug him. I did though, I was just so scared. I felt so scared and alone at that nightmare. It was nearly hard to believe that I had been having those nightmares about a week ago. I always felt better then but now, I needed someone to comfort me.

All the show I put on slipped away and I started to cry. I didn't want to cry, not in front of anyone and, hell, I didn't even want to cry in front of myself. It was petty and weak. _I _was petty and weak. I couldn't deny that, all the Rose bravado I had put up was no more. The walls that kept me up…

I wept all my freaking feelings out on his shoulder and he just held me there, patting my back softly. I wanted to stop crying but when I tried, the sobs just get worse. Today was like reliving all those memories first-hand and witnessing it over and over again. I wanted to be mad at myself for being so weak but it was just useless, I ended up getting depressed and it made me cry just as hard.

I didn't know how long I wept on Maxim's shoulder but it was a while. The collar on his shirt was wet and I chastised myself for being so reckless and ruining his clothes.

"Sorry about that," I didn't why what I was apologizing for, his shirt or my breakdown? I sniffled and wiped away the tears on my face. I think I didn't have more tears to shed so I just made myself talk.

"I got a weird dream again." I muttered and looked around the room. Despite my earlier emotional breakdown, I felt astonished by the room.

He looked at me and the worry there was impossible to avoid. He brushed away some of my stray hair and tucked it behind my ear.

"I'm alright," I convinced him but the look on his face said that he didn't believe any of it.

"Do you need something? Water?" he asked in a low voice. I didn't answer but I just stared at my lap. "Rose, look at me," he put a finger on my chin and tilted my head up. His eyes just weren't worried now and they were a bit frustrated. "Everything is fine, nothing is wrong, you just had a bad dream." He crooned and cradled me to his chest. I was only half aware of that, my mind just reeled back on the memories that had always haunted me.

I scolded myself again for thinking about those – it wasn't any help if I wanted to calm down. This dude really needed to back off of me but… he_ calms_ me down… I didn't know why but my mind has been a bit screwed up lately so maybe I was not the best judge. Instead of moping (again), I looked at Maxim's eyes, trying to see if it could help me from bursting into freakin' tears again. It did help a little. I could only wonder now at how he could have got those beautiful eyes. The color of his eyes were so mesmerizing, it really looked like the color of sea with it's outer irises outlined with a soft color of gray, making it look wide and endless. _Really like the sea, unlike Dimitri's dark depths of brown._

"Here you go, young master." I heard a familiar voice say with the thick Romanian accent. I pulled away from Maxim and saw that James had a tray with a tall glass of water. Maxim took the glass and held it out to me. Before James left, he gave me a small polite bow. I smiled, unsuccessfully, at James.

I let out a loud sigh and took the glass from him and began gulping it down, Maxim might be annoying but he was efficient. Kind of. As soon as I finished drinking, he stared at me with narrowed eyes.

"Would you like to explain?" he asked a while later. I felt a little awkward being with him in one room but I didn't have a choice. I had cried on his shirt and I didn't have a retort that was plausible enough to make him back off.

"It was just a freaking dream. You know, with all those zombies chasing you around and you feel that you're the only one left of your kind." I said but it came out more than just a little white lie.

He narrowed his eyes further but let it go. This was what I liked about him – he didn't push on discussing some uncomfortable subjects. Unlike Dimitri who was the total opposite but that fierce attitude was what drawn me to him. I could only wonder. Maxim should know that I _wouldn't_ tell him what the hell was wrong with me. I would never tell anyone about that nightmare. I'd rather he think that I was crazy and schizophrenic.

He looked like he was about to say something else but thought better of it. In the same time he closed his mouth, there was a knock on the door. He pushed himself off the bed and opened the wooden door. It was the two chamber maids that I had met before, Olga and Mariana. When Maxim saw them, he smiled and both girls greeted him in a good morning.

Maxim let the two chamber maids in and I frantically combed my hair with my fingers but I think I just ended up looking hilarious to Maxim. Some of my fury towards him was slightly ebbed due to my earlier emotional breakdown. Normally, I should have blamed the guy but he was being _nice_ so I better swallow up the rest of my pride and just go with the flow.

_Go with the flow,_ I repeated to myself and suddenly remembered what happened to Stas when he just "got with the flow." I repressed a shudder and looked at the two chamber maids in speculation. As always, they curtsied and smiled at me though I think they already knew that I was not really one of the royalties here.

"Rose," Maxim's noticeable voice pulled me out of my speculative thoughts. I looked up at him and raised a brow like Dimitri always did but, like in any other time, I failed. He seemed to notice that and he _kind of_ repressed a small smile and wiggled his brows _a little_ at me. He might be a royal with buff but I was sure I could take him down if I really wanted to_. Moroi men are so irritating_, I grumbled to myself.

Noticing my change of mood, he stopped what he was doing and gave me a small apologetic smile which I answered with a snub. He gave me a little exasperated sigh and continued what he was about to say. "Rose, Olga and Mariana are going to be your personal assistants here in the palace. If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell them or _me_." He emphasized the word "me" like he was talking to a mentally deranged person. Which was probably true. "I'll meet you for breakfast in an hour or so." Maxim gave me one last smile and gracefully walked toward the door. It was a little difficulty finding how tall men get that kind of gracefulness. Some were from some kind of practice but Maxim looked like he just grew with it. But then, he wasn't as tall as my ex Russian lover.

As if hearing my contemplating thoughts, he turned his head back to me; a small amused smile was tugging on the corner of his lips, and winked. I barely noticed it and wondered how fast he could move. The next thing I saw was the carved wooden door where his eyes were supposed to be. Damn.

It took me seconds to recover from that and as soon as I returned to my own peace of mind and body, the chamber maids practically hauled me to a wide-spaced rose-and-white colored bathroom. It showed a wide view of the setting sun outside of the palace and it wasn't like the usual orange and pink glow, it was more than a little gloomy but it was because of the upcoming winter. I hadn't known that I spent my time (of twelve hours) wasting by just sleeping but it was good to know that I had my energy back. I could feel my stiffened muscles gain their usual strength again.

Other than the sunset, the bathroom didn't look like _any_ bathroom. It looked like my personal indoor paradise, full with all kinds of beauty products and a small Jacuzzi. Glad they had one in this ancient place.

With slight disbelief, I enjoyed the most amazing bathroom experience of my life.

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**Okay, guys, I know it is very, very short and don't tell me it isn't crappy, okay? I've been writing this while having a freakin' headache and I just can't think well about more things to happen the next chapters so I need some ideas. Non-Dimitri ideas. What do you think would Rose and Maxim do while they're in their short vacation in the Romanov palace? All your ideas are welcome. Dimitri's still a couple of chapters away but I'll be speedy. I know how desperate you must be. **

**I'll update as soon as this head of mine will stop aching so much.**

**Love lots, **

**Kate :D**


	7. A Love Quarrel or What?

**Thank you for the clean bill of health! Just finished this in hours.**

**ENJOY! :D**

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**Chapter Six**

**A Love Quarrel or What?**

"It's just because you're a stupid brainless asshole who doesn't get what the statement 'back off' means." Harsh, Rose, very harsh. Well, the guy deserved it.

He closed his eyes as I spat more obscene things at him. I should give it to the guy, he was overly-tolerant of me and that just made my plan to go back to the academy a failure. I was hoping that he would send me back to the academy for the last three days that I have been here.

"— I don't even know what I'm doing here in this God-forsaken place —"

"Rose," there was a warning tone on his voice. He opened his eyes and I could see the faintest hint of irritation in them.

I stopped talking, deciding it was better off giving him a glare rather than talk. This guy _did not_ deserve anything from me. He didn't find my glare intimidating. He, somehow, glared back at me and I raised my chin like a defiant little girl.

"You should understand that this—" he started but I cut him off.

"I don't want to hear it." _Again_, I wanted to add.

He gave me an inane look and he breathed in and out slowly like he was controlling his temper. I knew that I was acting like a bitch but I was not impressed by him. I _refuse_ to acknowledge his advances on me— in courtesy of Abe or no.

"Rose, stop acting like an immature girl, you have to grow up." he said in a scary-calm way and my anger, kind of, flared up. What he said…_ hurt_. Ouch. I didn't want him to know I was hurt so I just let out all of my anger.

I looked at him with fire in my eyes and he returned me with the same. I decided, again, that it was better to walk away rather than fight with him. Fighting with words never helped both of our accords. I glared at him one last time, turned away from him—making sure my hair swept his way—and stalked off to the palace's eastern side.

The palace, I know, was a wonderful place but there was something—or _someone_—in the place unnerving. I was being harsh to Maxim on purpose because he just reminded me of Dimitri so much. So, so much that it hurt. I just covered up that hurt with my attitude and made myself hate him. It was no use though; his patience reminded me of _his_.

From the short but dragging time I had been here in the palace, I acquired some information from either James or the chamber maids about the palace. The palace was more than seventy acres, believe it or not. Mostly, the surroundings were woods with a few dots of cottages, huts and gazebos when you look at their blue-print. There were no pools, unfortunately, but there was a river just a few minutes away by foot. The river was still inside the palace's wards so I had nothing to worry about.

Maxim surprised me by not following me to the woods. He usually followed me when I was in a foul mood or after we have some kind of argument. He always wanted to make things clear with me but now… I think I really pissed him off.

I found the river by myself when I was trying to calm myself down about two days ago. Every hour, Maxim and I always bicker and it really hasn't turned this serious before. I stomped my way to the river while I pulled my cardigan tighter to me. It still wasn't snowing in here but the temperature was telling me that it was already snowing in the mountains.

I sucked in my cheeks as I walked past the trees and some cawing birds on my way to the river. When I finally heard the soft whispers of water splashing with each other, a clear sigh of relief came out of my lips. My pace got faster and I found what I was looking for. It was the same when I had left it.

The fallen leaves were untouched on the ground and it cracked as with every step I take. The river was wide and it looked deep with its greenish-blue color. And the second I loved the most there was at the middle of the river. It was a wooden gazebo. The gazebo was floating on the water, peaceful and undisturbed. There were circular stone steps that led to the gazebo in the water too and I wondered why those stones floated like that. I tried knocking them out once but it felt like it was held down by something strong below the water. The place was better than heaven.

I looked at the river and saw my reflection staring back. She looked like a stranger to me now. She wasn't the Rose I used to see every day. Not the tough, unyielding Rose Hathaway but this one looked ridiculous and _petty_. Very petty. I closed my eyes and inhaled a deep breath and then exhaled. It was my only resort of calm.

I made my way to the floating gazebo and sat on the wooden swing attached on the middle of its ceiling. The soft padding on the swing was enough to calm down a few nerves and the air wasn't as cold as before. The trees slowly swayed and I pushed myself to rock the swing. I curled into a ball and leaned my chin on my knees. It felt nice to have a change of scenery nowadays.

"Rose, you are so screwed." I told myself. At this time, it was true. I just had a fight with a huge royal Moroi and just called him _many_ bad things— what could be worse than that? Oh, and note that that royal Moroi was the owner of the place that I live in—anything could happen to me.

I sighed, a tad bit guilty for what I did to Maxim. I even considered about apologizing but my pride wouldn't step down from its throne. _Stupid pride_, I grumbled to myself and leaned back on the swing. As I had hoped, the place became my remedy and the whispers of the wind became my lullaby. I leaned my head back on the small bolster and closed my eyes until the wind lulled me to sleep.

~~****~~

The first thing I heard before slipping back into consciousness were the birds. Some were chirping and it sounded like they were having fun. Fun in the cold weather? That's nice… Wow, I was in a good mood now. Slowly, I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw were the trees. The place wasn't as gloomy now. I remembered why I was here—it was because of that frivolously shallow argument I started with Maxim. I turned a bit restless at that memory.

Noticing my stiff form, I straightened from it and rubbed my eyes. I dropped my feet back to the floor and blinked. Yes, blinked. Somebody was here—or rather Maxim was here—in the gazebo. He was sitting on the stall just in front of the gazebo's banister opening.

He didn't look up when I suddenly stood up from the swing, making it sway hard back and forth. Even it was the side of his face I could see, it still looked as gorgeous as ever. It was really the first time that I had made myself _think_ that Maxim was gorgeous. I was still indecisive of what I was going to do—apologize or stick up to my pride?

Mustering all my will power, I swallowed my ridiculous pride and walked towards him. Uneasily, I might add. He still didn't look up to me so I sat on the stall next to his. My heart was beating hard and fast and my palms were a bit clammy when I did. My body was showing every sign of guilt—I hated it. I thought about what to say to Maxim but every time I suck in the breath to talk, I just stopped and thought about how bad it'll turn out. _And how petty I'll sound._

_Maxim's good, Rose, he'll understand you_, I encouraged myself. I repeated that to myself over and over again but it was far to winning.

"Rose, can we start over?" he asked all of a sudden.

He shocked me with his words. I turned to look at him without gaping. "What do you mean?"

He gave me half a smile and it lit up his whole face. "Start over. Everything. I want to make things right with you." He explained with a condescending look on his face.

That just shocked me more. He wants to make things right with _me_? I was the one who started the fight… Well, I was not that stupid to refuse to start over with Maxim. It was even better than just apologizing. Considering how we first met… Yeah, we did _need_ to start over.

I gave him a genuine smile. "I'd like that." I told him.

The grateful look he gave me nearly melted my bones. "Thanks," he breathed and sighed.

"So, what do people do when they start over?" I asked.

He gave me a look that said "anything."

I narrowed my eyes at him playfully and bounced up from the stall. "Come on, Romanov." I teased. "Show me what you got." I beckoned him to me and he stepped away from his stall and looked at me like a predator on hunt. Then it hit me.

Shit… I didn't remember that I was standing behind on water. He would probably push me there—which would likely end our new-found truce. He probably saw it in my eyes because he chuckled.

"Don't worry. You're not going in there." He told me in a reassuring way. "Alone."

With a motion too fast for me to anticipate, he ran too me and caught my waist by his left shoulder and the next thing I knew, I was airborne. I let out a girly scream and the cold took over my other senses. I could still feel Maxim's hands on my waist as we resurfaced for air. He was wet, of course, and his shaggy chestnut hair looked black. He was laughing loudly and his eyes were bright with exhilaration.

"You son of a bitch!" I screamed at him but I was laughing too. Really laughed. It was the first time I had really laughed since my life fell apart—it made me feel that I owed Maxim some gratitude. O f course I did. I pushed him away and splashed water on his face to drown out his laughter. It did and he went into fits of coughs. I laughed louder only to get my earlier doing backfired at me. My throat was a little raw from the water but I still laughed as we played "water-benders." And speaking of…

"You're cheating!" I accused him and swam as fast as I could to the boulder at one side of the river. He caught up with me easily.

"Why do you think of that?" he asked but he didn't bother hear my answer because he dove down the deep water. I stared at where he had been and the only thing I could see was the color of greenish-blue. The color reminded me of his eyes. I quickly scrambled up to the boulder for safety—I couldn't be sure if Maxim would pull my feet down to joining him in wherever he was.

I fought to catch my breath and I scanned the water for any shadows indicating a swimming guy. There was none. Not even a movement of the water. I felt a weird déjà vu from movies where huge crocodiles, sharks or anacondas were about to jump out of the water and chomp on your flesh. I shivered, not only from the gruesome recollection of a movie but from the air too. The weather was already cold when I had been dry but when in wet clothes? I think this temperature would possibly stop a human's heart from beating. Was there a temperature-driven ailment named cool stroke? If there is, that should be the one they're after when they were not dhampir while in this wet state. It's probably colder than Siberia now.

I kept looking at the water but there was no sign of Maxim. I started to worry. Maybe I drowned him? I was not sure. I kneeled on the boulder and leaned down to the river.

"Maxim?" calling seemed like the safest thing to do at the moment. What if there was something down there? Maybe he was just trying to prank me. "Nice one, Maxim. You can get out of the water now!" I called louder. "Don't you need air to survive?" I added and gave up. I sat on the boulder and rubbed my temples.

_Jackass_, I said to myself and I heard a leaf crack. I automatically turned around and saw that Maxim was there, standing—shirtless—and smirking. "Not really,"

My face scrunched up in confusion. "Huh?"

"You asked if I needed air to survive, I said 'not really.'"

"And _why_ do you say that?"

"Because," —he crouched down to level his eyes with mine—"you're the only thing I need to keep me alive."

The sentiment caught me off guard. "And what do you mean by _that_?"

He threw back his head and laughed. The sound was musical and good to the ears. "Don't act so surprised, Rose." He told me, smirking in a way that reminded me of Dimitri… _Damn you, Rose! Stop thinking about Dimitri!_

"Why not?"

He frowned at me. "And don't play dumb either, it doesn't suit you."

"Is this what you call 'starting over'?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes, it actually is." I was half-aware that his face was only inches away from mine now. His eyes somehow landed on my lips. "Your lips are blue." He said and leaned in dangerously close. Normally, I should have pulled away or took a swing at him but the crackle of electricity that turned up from his lips brushed with mine was immobilizing. It was barely a kiss but it warmed my face up.

_Oh my God, I was blushing!_

This was darn unbelievable.

Just within a second, he pulled away and tossed me a small towel which I luckily caught. He stood up and held out one hand to help me up.

"Did you just—" I didn't finish it and it was like the whole world tilted into another thing.

He grinned at me and winked. "Get used to it."

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**No, I have no headache anymore and thank God for that (seriously, there's no sarcasm there). I rarely get sick so I'm not kinda not used to it… **

**Sooo… how's the chapter? Did you like it? Did you hate it?**

**Tell me what you think about the chapter. And ideas are more than welcome.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate :D**


	8. Candid

**I am so sorry. I was supposed to update earlier but I dozed off when I was making the chapter. It sounds kind of silly that I slept like a baby (complete with drool and all) during day here (I haven't been able to sleep in straight eight hours since a week or two ago). The result of that is a friggin' stiff neck. Ugh. Anyway, I'm glad I regained some of my energy.**

**I just want to note that nobody still guessed what the title of the story is about. Any new idea what the title might be?**

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**Chapter Seven**

**Candid**

"Smile," I heard Maxim say before I heard a click, accompanied by a bright flash. A slow, creeping feeling of recognition hit me when I heard something rolling out mechanically.

I turned around immediately and could have stumbled and landed face flat on the floor when Maxim hadn't caught me.

"Whoa, slow down there, Rose." He told me with a slight smile.

I didn't reply but looked at his hands. There was a Polaroid on his hands and a glossy paper with a grey figure. I didn't know what it was.

"You got a Polaroid camera?" I asked him although it was already obvious that he had one.

He smirked and I couldn't help but smirk back at him. Sometimes he just looked adorable. Yes, I actually _admitted_ that Maxim looked adorable despite his size. Our truce was still intact, thank God about that. We haven't been fighting ever since he…you know… kissed me. Er, it wasn't even a kiss, it was just a brush. Yes, it was only a brush but it created one hell of a rare reaction in me—I had blushed.

He waved the camera in front of my eyes.

"They still make those things?" I asked, pointing at the old-looking camera.

"Of course, but they're rarely produced nowadays." He said and idly stroked the camera. He had a faraway look on his face like he was remembering something. "My father gave this to me during my ninth birthday back in our place in Germany." He had a wistful look on his face and I just watched as it morphed back to its original lazy smile like he didn't have any single problem in the world.

I bit my lip to keep from asking but curiosity won again. "Who's your dad?" my mouth said without my permission. "You don't have to answer that if you don't want to." I added hurriedly but I hoped he would answer my question.

He gave me a smile and put hand on the small of my back. He gestured toward the bench near us. We were at the garden where I fought the wrath of the Moroi and dhampir zombies nearly two weeks ago and it triggered a sensitive spot on me. Memories were hard to control if they remember it. Sometimes I even wish that I'd forget all of those things that happened—those entire heart aches I'd been through, the deaths, the losses.

When we sat, he stayed quiet, fiddling on the controls on the Polaroid with a small smile on his lips. It wasn't really a happy-go-lucky smile, but… I don't know what that was. It conveyed something that I couldn't quite reach.

"My father…" he started and looked up from his camera to me. "What do you want to know?"

"Uh, the basics." I told him and looked up at him expectantly.

He was biting his lip like he was thinking but I could see that he was hesitating. He thought everything out about three seconds before saying, "His name was Kostya."

"What kind of name is that?" the words came out in a way I would have found offending. I was about to apologize when I heard Maxim's deep chuckle. I looked at him and he looked amused. The way he was looking at me gave it all away.

"It's Slavic, Rose." he told me and touched the tip of my nose.

"You're Slavic?" I asked him, scrunching up my face in confusion. I didn't have to ask that, I was making myself look like a fool. Damn.

"No, we're not. We're pure Russian in blood." He told me with a slight remedied raise of his chin.

"Then why is your father's name Slavic?" Okay, I really needed to stop that. Playing twenty questions weren't my _thang_.

"My father's true name was Konstantin Nikolai," he said with a small smile playing on his lips but his eyes said something else. He looked like he was _still_ grieving. Or some sort.

I raised a brow but I couldn't really get it right like he—or Dimitri—usually did. My muscles weren't used to that stuff. "Was? Why was?"

He gave me a look that said that the question wasn't really that welcome but he answered it anyway. "He was killed when I was still fourteen." He said and I could almost feel his sadness like it was my own. It hit deeply in my heart and my heart just broke for him. I wasn't this soft before but something in Maxim's words made me feel so sorry for him. Maybe it was because I knew how it felt to lose someone you love dearly. Or maybe it was because I, too, knew how it felt to have nobody there for you. Don't get me wrong but Lissa—and Pyro—was always there for me but I didn't feel that… _protected_. It felt like I should be the one who was always strong and that was really the whole truth.

I took his hand in mine as a gesture of condolence. I didn't ask more, but just played with his fingers. I wasn't really comfortable in emotional things—it made me feel kinda off even though I had been doing that a lot lately myself.

"They never uncovered who or what killed him." he continued. I squeezed his hand and he gave a grateful squeeze back. "They didn't even try," he added dryly and almost sounded angry. His hand tightened in mine and I the hunch that he wasn't letting me see what he was really feeling. Just like Dimitri would do. Ouch, I should stop thinking about that too.

"They just told me that it was a Strigoi attack but I never believed that it was that." I felt helpless now, he looked like he was about to bolt and hit the first thing that would come in his way. I was glad I had fast reflexes but looking at Maxim's built Moroi form, I felt little and less tough. "There wasn't enough evidence for it to be a Strigoi attack—there wasn't even one damned puncture on his throat or anywhere on his body." I was aware that he was shaking—trembling with anger, so I did the best thing I could think of.

"You don't have to tell me those things." I told him and idly stroked his arm. I could see that his jaw was clenched tight and I swear the muscles there were moving. He closed his eyes tightly and leaned on to me, burying his face on the crook of my neck. From my enhanced dhampir hearing, I could almost hear his heart beating fast and erratically and I was fully aware of his heavy breathing. He was trying to calm himself. So, what I did was necessary. I hesitated a little but I proceeded to wrap my arms awkwardly around his waist and patted his back.

We stayed like that for a second before he encircled his arms around my waist too and pulled me closer to him. My heart skipped a beat but I told myself that this was strictly friend bemoaning with a friend. I realized that I was now so close to him I was practically sitting on his lap. I felt a little inelegant about it but I tried my best to ignore my insecurities and… mourn with Maxim. I owed him that much.

I noticed a while later that the gray picture Maxim had been holding was now colored. It was my picture—on a side-view but it looked good with the background. The background was the sun. It was setting, and let out the color of faint orange and blue in the sky with just a hint of pink in spite of the gloomy weather.

I took Maxim out of his misery by a compliment. "This looks wonderful, Maxim." I said while I looked at his face on the crook of my neck. I felt proud of myself when I saw a smile creep to his lips. He didn't look at the picture but he moved his eyes up to look at me.

"It only looks wonderful because of you." He told me quietly and I didn't dare let myself lose in the color of his eyes.

_Not again_, Maxim occasionally made vague commentaries intended to flatter a girl like me but I usually ignore them. For some reason, I wasn't really into beauty talk.

"Uh-huh," I grimaced and disentangled myself from his strong arms, standing in front of him. "I think I smell pancakes," I told him and held out my hand. He frowned at me but took my outstretched hand.

I was relieved that he didn't further his intentions toward me—it was obvious that he had his mind clouded by my _beauty_ **(LOL :D)**. Nevertheless, I was just saving myself the heartache.

~~****~~

"It's cold, really." Lissa said in dismay through the phone. I could hear soft mumblings near her. I assumed it was Christian and his aunt, Tasha. "The beach is always no fun without that much sun." she added in a light lilting voice.

I made a noise deep in my throat.

"Of course, the beach is _never_ fun without you, Rose." She told me and I could hear the smile on her voice. "I am certain you know that already."

"Nope. We can't be too certain on one thing, Liss." I told her and plopped down on the bed with a heavy sigh.

"You sound better." She noted. "Do you feel better?"

The corner of my lips twitched up to a smile. "Actually,"—I reached out for my iPod—"I don't feel like killing myself anymore."

I heard Lissa gasp from the other line. "Rose, what did you do to yourself? Did you cut—?"

"Just making fun of you, Liss." I said with a light laugh. I—as abrupt as it may sound—felt a lot better than before.

"That is so not funny, Rose!" her voice was louder and I figured that she was exclaiming on Paris. I just laughed at her. "Anyway, I just called to see if you were alright. Was the 'royal bastard' being nice to you?" she asked and I nearly laughed again. "Royal bastard" was my secret nickname to Maxim. Er, before we had the truce, that is.

I sighed again and it sounded more like a wistful one rather than an annoyed one. I mentally kicked myself for that and hoped Lissa didn't get that.

"Yes, Lissa, he has been _very_ nice." I told her and I let the sarcasm drip abundantly. I was a natural when it came to sarcasm and bitchy defiance. I had a lot of them. I was hoping to misinterpret her, I was _afraid_ to admit even to my best friend that I was on the brink of forgetting the stuff that happened. I even _almost _forgot about her too and I don't think her reaction to that would be good for her mental health. With the bond gone now, she would probably go loco.

"What did he do now?" she asked and I could hear her amusement. Naïve Lissa, I loved her dearly.

"Oh, nothing…"—I yawned involuntarily—"…except that he pushed me to the river which sent me plummeting…" I trailed off, thinking about how he got out of the water when he was swimming under the water. Well, that guy could almost do _anything_, so it didn't really matter.

"With him?" she asked, excitement for me filling her voice. "Tell me he pulled you with him. Or was it the other way around?"

I recalled to Lissa what had happened and it sent her squealing in a very high pitch, I had to remove the phone on my ear.

"That's very good, Rose! Oh, I can't wait to meet him! Please tell him that I said 'hi' and I would like to meet him someday!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Liss." I said hurriedly, a bit taken aback. "You already have Christian." And then I regretted it as soon as it left my lips. She was baiting me into admitting it.

_Good one_, I thought.

"Caught ya!" she giggled. "Do you really like him? Like, _really_ like him?"

"I don't _really_ like him." I gave more emphasis on "really."

"Really?"

"Really, Liss." Sometimes, I don't really get blondes these days **(A/N: No pun intended)**.

"Are you sure? You sound possessive, you know that, right?"

Ah, now I got her. She was trying to bait me again. Well, she failed. It was my turn to say, "caught ya."

"Sorry, Liss, I'm not as gullible as you think I am."

"Oh, come on, Rose. You obviously like the guy and don't try to deny it. What was his name again?"

I sucked in a deep breath. "First of all, missy, I do _not_ like the guy." That was partially a lie. I didn't really _like_ Maxim. "And second, his name is none of you business."

"Oh," the playfulness on her voice was gone now. "Sorry, I just thought that—" she stopped and swallowed loudly.

"Aw, Liss, don't cry." I told her, instantly feeling guilty. "It is definitely your business because you're my best friend." I sat on my bed and fiddled on the sheets.

"Would you tell me?" I couldn't help but feel guilt build up inside me at how her voice sounded so small.

"Of course. His name is Maxim Romanov." I told her.

She instantly switched back to the bubbly Lissa. "That's a great name, you know? Do you know what his name means?"

"No," I frowned at that. I hadn't known that names had their own meaning.

"Maxim means 'great' or 'the great,' I think. I'll have to check the net for the exact meaning next time." She noted. "Romanov is a very prestigious family, too. James, the butler, told us about their history. Their rise and their fall. It was very sad." Her high, fluty voice deepened and I knew that she was thinking about her family.

"Hey, Liss, when will you get back here?" I interrupted her thoughts; I was worried about her mental health. That was a constant threat to her. I hoped she wouldn't lose it there on Paris, which would be bad enough.

"Um, about two days." She told me. "Do you miss me?" I was glad that she was making fun now, not slowly drowning to the darkness that spirit brings.

"You don't know how much, Lissa." I yawned again.

"I should let you sleep now, sounds like you've had a tough day."

"Yup," I rubbed my eyes and stretched, hearing my joints pop.

"Okay, good night, Rose. I love you."

"Night, Liss. Love you, too." I said and added something before she hung up. "And tell Pyro and his aunt I said 'hi.'" I had the grace to be polite now. I just wanted Lissa to be away from the darkness as much as possible.

"Sure," I could hear that she was _really_ happy. She passed my greeting and I heard her chastise Christian about saying something so rude. "They said 'hi' too. Sleep, Rose, good night again and I love you!" she hung up.

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**That was really short but I hope you like it. I'll be updating soon when I get the chance. I'm spending my time reading Succubus Shadows. LOL, I love Georgie.**

**To all who read my other story, DropDead Gorgeous, I will update tomorrow.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate xx**


	9. Kiss Me in the Rain

**Yeah, blame me. It took me ten days to update—which sucks like a totaled car in a head-on collision. LOL… Okay, I don't think that was funny. Sorry for not updating so soon guys, I had my reasons. Got me some writer's block and a nonexistent wit that needed to be fueled. And guess what?! I learned a ****little****!**

**NOTE: Rose's first dialogue doesn't belong to me. It was from a movie called Sugar and Spice.**

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**Chapter Eight**

**Kiss Me in the Rain**

"Good morning, sunshine." I told myself in front of the mirror with a mock jolly voice. I mustered up my strength to widen my eyes until it looked owlish and gave myself a sweet smile on the mirror. "Remember, these are the best days of your life." I winked at my reflection and turned around.

"Watching too much chick flicks has altered your personality, I see." Maxim said from the chair on the corner of my room. He had the phone's extension on his hand and it made me wonder if he had a cell phone.

"Don't you ever knock?" I asked him while I fumbled on the closet.

"It's my house, I don't knock." He answered.

"Yeah, it is _your_ house. But this is _my_ room."

"I see where you are getting at." Maxim noted in a light tone. "You're trying to argue with me again."

I sharply turned around to face him. "Are you accusing me of something?" I asked in a fake offended tone. It was true that I was _trying_ to argue with him again. My conversation with Lissa last night hadn't cooled off my jets.

A frown formed on his lips. "I'm not accusing you of anything; Rose, but I can see where you _are_ getting at."

"Okay, pal," I told him and stalked toward him. "Stop beating around the bush and let's cut to the chase." I gestured with sharp motions of my hands. "What are you doing here inside my room early in the morning?" I asked and glared and him with much force I could muster. I was still a bit groggy and I hadn't even combed my hair yet. A thought that nearly stroke me sick to my heart. "And don't tell me that I was having a nightmare because if I had, I would've cut my wrists off by now."

He looked at me, the stubborn line of his jaw appearing tense and hard. His eyes were darkened and his hair was a bit unkempt than usual. Maxim unfolded all 6'4" of him and tossed the phone extension into the air and lightly caught it. He looked thoughtful for the moment.

"We don't get to go out more often," he said and gave me a smile that reminded me of Dimitri's.

_Dammit, Rose, when will you get over Dimitri already?!_ I chastised myself and I was certain that the chastisement wouldn't budge.

"Let's go for a ride around the town. Let's have fun and forget all the wrecks and mishaps in life, Rose."

The ideas of forgetting the wrecks and mishaps in life were persuading me. I jumped on the balls of my feet like a little girl.

"Sure. Where do you want to go?" I asked him and I was sure that my smile gave my excitement away.

"Wherever you want to go." He said and turned on his heel. "Get changed, eat breakfast, the we'll go." He called when he was at the door.

***Maxim's Jaguar***

"Howdy," I said when Maxim got in the car and started it up, turning on the audio and the works.

"So," he put his hands on the steering wheel and stole a glance from me while he drove out of the palace. "Have you decided where you want to go?"

I have decided a while ago that a ranch would be great. If there were even ranches here. Ranches were full of animals and…eh, animals didn't like me, but that would be better for the change.

"A ranch full of animals, Maxim. I want to get myself tortured by wild, untamed bulls and geese to peck me with their annoying beaks." Do geese peck? I don't know, I was not really an expert about them. Not that I had any ambition to.

He chuckled deep in his throat—the resonance was deep. Just like his personality: deep.

"I thought animals hated dhampir." He said in a placid tone but I could hear his curiosity burn.

"They do." I confirmed with an expressive wave of my hand. "Just drop me there and let's hope for the best."

"Uh-huh, let's just hope that the animals are out in a weather like this." He pointed at the darkening clouds in the sky. It was early morning in human time and Maxim and I had succumbed during nights like normal people do—not the nocturnal schedule for vampires.

"Of course they're out." I was surprised at how hopeful I sounded. I felt it too. "No matter what the weather is, animals have to get their butts working for their masters."

"You're not their master." He noted.

"Says who?"

"Doctor Seuss," he said with a Gallic shrug, simple yet expressive.

"You mean the cat that came out from a Christmas hat?" I asked him while I fiddled on his stereo's controls.

"Yes, Doctor Seuss is a cat, but he didn't come out of a Christmas hat." He told me in a very teacher-like way.

"What do you call a hat that's colored red and white then?" I asked rhetorically, just to annoy him. I enjoyed teasing Maxim. "Halloween?"

"I don't really know but everything has its own meaning, just waiting to be deciphered."

"You're such a smart-ass." I told him in a lightly accusing tone. We rode in silence and just listened to the music that his stereo played. It wasn't long when one of my favorite songs played. It was "Wherever You Will Go" by one of my favorite bands, The Calling. It was a great song and it seemed to point out something. The lines "I know now, just quite how /my life and love might still go on /in your heart and your mind /I'll stay with you for all of time" somehow rang inside my head, telling me something. Letting me see something that was utterly impossible. It triggered a pain inside me, leaving me a little breathless.

It was telling me not to let that significant somebody go.

Ugh, it was my first time that this song became unwelcome. I turned the dial and listened to a rap song that just pretty much just mumbled all their words. I couldn't understand it but this one was better than to suffer martyrdom of lost love from listening to songs that plainly said, "DON'T LET GO."

Eventually, we arrived at a small ranch. Yes, it was early in the morning which meant there were no Strigoi, no lurking danger and the weather was gloomy enough to not fry a vampire into crisps. No, the latter was just a joke. The sun couldn't really fry Moroi but it just _irritates _them.

Maxim honked his car's horn three times and a man in his late sixties came out of the small house at the corner of the ranch. He had a small smile on his face when he caught sight of the car.

Maxim took my hand and we strode toward the waving man.

"Hey there, kiddo. Long time no see." He told Maxim and playfully tousled Maxim's light brown hair. The old man turned to look at me; his blue eyes were piercing and young despite his physical age. "And who is this beauty?" he asked Maxim with a playful smile. "You got yourself one heck of a catch here, kiddo." I heard him murmur to Maxim's ear.

Maxim smiled at the man and gave his famous Gallic shrug—completely at ease.

"I'm Gilbert but you can call me Granpa, little girl." Him calling me little girl reminded me of Abe.

I smiled at the man and waved. "I'm Rose,"

"Aw, don't be modest. Feel free to do whatever you like." He told me with a dismissive wave. "Do you like horses?" he asked me.

"Ah, yeah…" I nodded.

"Good. I'll bet you're gonna love my Draco. He's one of a kind." He said as he led us to a big red barn. When he opened the door, I was overwhelmed. It was like having a sensory overload or whatnot. The smell of animals was thick in the air; the sounds of their yakking and clocks were loud; the place itself was filled with animals.

One animal caught my whole attention though. It was white, pure white with a weird black spot at the back of its long neck.

"That right there Rose, is my Draco." He pointed at the white horse.

I looked at the man curiously. "Why'd you name it Draco?"

"I caught Draco in the wild, wild west a few years ago. _He_ was one hell of a monster to tame but I succeeded. 'Draco' is Latin for dragon, you know that?" I shook my head. "I named him after dragon because he had its characteristics. Tough, courageous and always ready for a battle, not to mention hot-tempered even for horse." Granpa chuckled and started toward the huge white horse.

"Don't be scared," he crooned to the horse. "She ain't here to hurt you like Lizbeth does. She's a friend." He stroked his neck and the horse made a show of rubbing its wet nose on Gilbert's face. "Now, that's a good dragon." He petted it and released the huge white horse as it walked to me.

My heart raced a little but I kept up a calm façade.

"Don't worry, he likes dhampirs too." Maxim murmured close to my ear. I glanced at him curiously. He shrugged again.

"Okay, Maxi-boy, you get Portia and we'll teach your girl friend how to ride."

"She' not—"

Granpa held up one hand to silence him. "I meant _girl_ friend. Not girlfriend." For an old man, he was witty. I guess wit carried within age.

Minutes later, I learned that Portia—Maxim's horse—was a huge black one which looked the opposite of Draco. It was female and _she_ worked better with guys.

"Put your ankle just right there. Alright," he arranged my feet on the stirrup and gave it a pat. "Keep your feet there. Sit up straight, and hold your chin up. Yes, like that." Granpa took a step back to admire me and the horse. "You look like a natural at this. Are you sure you hadn't tried this yet?" he asked when we started on a slow walk.

"No. In fact, I didn't have any history with animals. They don't really like me." Not that I blamed them.

Granpa chuckled. "Well, then, why does Draco love you if all animals don't?"

I shook my head, not believing that the horse loved me. "It—I mean _he_ doesn't love me. It—he's just behaving like a good horse." I patted the horse's soft white back.

An hour had passed and I learned how to ride a horse easily as fighting.

"You might as well enjoy this while you can. It looks like it's about to poor soon." Maxim said as he trotted along with me. Granpa was inside with his wife, Lizbeth, a nice-looking woman in her near fifties. It surprised me that Granpa and Lizbeth had ten or so years gap within their age. But hey, love makes you blind… I experienced that myself.

I looked up at the sky, Sure enough, it was dark and cloudy and it looked like it was about to rain at any second.

"Aw… I don't like this day to end." I grumbled.

"It doesn't have to," Maxim said with a challenging smile. "Race you. First one gets to two laps win."

"What's the loser supposed to do?"

Maxim shrugged and readied himself to rein his huge black horse. "We'll just see to it later. Now, let's race." Without even my warning, he sped across the whole circle.

"Hey! Son of a gun! You're cheating!" Granpa's swearing was contagious. Why he doesn't swear like a normal person was beyond me.

I reined Draco and we sped toward Maxim. The air that slapped my face was cold and wintry but it didn't stop me. Draco was one fast horsey and he didn't take failure easily. I reined again and he galloped faster and sleeker.

I was aware of Granpa looking at us from his house's porch with a lady with him. I didn't really saw them but—whatever! I was exhilarated to the point of no return! No, I wasn't really serious but this feeling was just… I don't know. It was euphoric, jolly, everything positive. I laughed loudly and Maxim turned to look at me, his hair whipping.

"What are you laughing at?!" he asked while our horses ran faster. I was a good meter or two away from him but I reined and Draco went faster.

"I LOVE THIS HORSE AND THIS DAY!" was all I exclaimed before reining again, surprising Maxim, and I won! I made a silent note to myself to mark this day on my calendar.

"Woo-hoo!" I shouted and kissed Draco's neck. "I won! I friggin' won!" I hopped out from Draco and he nuzzled on my face, exhaling loudly which put horse drool on my neck. "Ew…" I wiped his drool away with my mittens.

I looked at Maxim who was now approaching me with a slower pace.

"I won, Maxim! I can't believe you lost!" I exclaimed like a child on Christmas day.

"Yes, it's hard to believe that I lost but it is easier to comprehend why you won." He said as he hopped off of Portia's back. The horse did a little yak-whimper and exhaled loudly. This caused drool to drop. I wonder why animals always have drool in their mouths. Don't they swallow them or something?

I spun around, my arms spread wide open.

"THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY _NEW_ LIFE!" I spun around and like in movies, the sky thundered and rain started to pour slowly.

And just like in some overly clichéd movies, Maxim wrapped his arms around my waist, swept me off my feet and spun ourselves around.

As cliché as it sounded, we found our gazes and—despite the cold weather—my body heated just with our gazes.

"New life?" he asked me, raising one brow up. Now, it didn't really hurt that much when that particular motion reminded me of Dimitri.

"Yes,"

"Am I a part of it?"

"Yes,"

And just when I thought everything could get better.

We leant in close until our lips touched. Kissing under the rain was yet another cliché, but it was a great one.

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**I hoped you liked this chapter. If you're asking about Dimitri, he'll be introduced back in the story soon.**

**I'll update soon, I promise. No more ten days. Less than that.**

**Please leave a REVIEW.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate :D**

**xx**


	10. Painting

**WHAT DOES THE TITLE MEAN?!?!**

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**Chapter Nine**

**Painting**

**DPOV**

"Young master," a butler called to me. Technically, I was not their young master, my brother was but they just kept their good old title for me. I did _not_ like to be called young master. It was completely revolting for me.

"I told you to call me by name," I mumbled, not looking up from the book that I was reading.

"I'm sorry to upset you, Sir Dimitri, but we have a visitor waiting for you downstairs." Well, that was the best I could let them call me. I didn't mind if they'd call me Mister Belikov because it wasn't that bad as the one mentioned before.

I closed my book reluctantly and looked up at the butler.

"Lady Elena Basescu awaits your presence," he said in a cryptic tone that was normal for him.

I didn't really know who this woman he was talking about but from her name and title, she was a sure royal. First off, I wasn't a huge fan of royals. Especially girls. Not that I have any personal antagonism towards them but… there was just something inside me that tends to jump uncomfortably whenever some are around. Women in general, I mean. Not only Moroi. Too bad the feeling wasn't mutual though.

Too many Moroi girls have been in this palace to visit me. This wasn't really their real intention. Visiting me, I mean. By the end of our conversation, I always get offers to be a guardian for them. Amongst other things.

Irritated, I stood up and dropped my book on the chair. I didn't wait for the butler to tell me where the girl was, I was already sure that she'd be waiting at the garden room downstairs with a cup of tea. That was always what they did.

By the time I rounded up the corner of the garden room, I caught a scent of orange blossoms with a hint of jasmine. Typical royal Moroi scents.

As I entered the garden room, I could say that I was surprised. I didn't know why I was surprised to see the Moroi sitting there. Maybe I had been expecting a blonde with the perpetual pair of blue eyes? Or a redhead with green eyes? But no, this one caught me a little off guard.

Her hair was a lustrous mahogany and I could see clearly that her eyes —which were played by the limited ray of sunlight—were cool blue-grey. From her form on the chair, she was tall and slim. Not overly thin like usual Moroi girls have but she had her own curves.

I shook my head in disbelief when I noticed that I was checking the girl out. I started, again, to walk towards her. Her head snapped to my direction, I probably startled her because she looked a little dazed.

"Dimitri Belikov," she said and stood up from her chair, straightening imaginary folds on her grey cashmere sweater. She walked towards me and held out a hand.

I looked down at her hands, not wanting to touch it. I didn't know why I was, somewhat, repulsed by her hands but it was just that. I wasn't a wimp by not wanting to touch her but it just seemed like it was reasonable. I was just plainly uninterested.

I heard her clear her throat and she dropped her hand to her sides, fiddling on her pencil skirt.

"You're Elena Basescu," I said in a tone that spoke volumes of nothing. I walked toward the seat opposite to hers and sat down, crossing my ankles.

She cleared her throat again. "Yes. Lady Maria Elena Basescu."

"What do you want?" it was easier to get rid of these girls by being rude and straight to the point. I was never the one who beats around the bush.

Elena strode to her chair and sat down, crossing her legs. She looked like the Moroi she really was, complete with a set of pearl jewelries and black sensible pumps.

"If you don't mind, I'm not the kind of woman who beats around the bush, I'll get straight to the point." She said in a professional yet friendly voice. She looked at me with piercing blue-grey eyes and continued, "I'd like to offer you a place for being my guardian and—"

"I'm not interested." I could clearly see that that wasn't what she wanted from me.

She looked at me, her expression not changing. "Excuse me?" she asked in a timely offended voice.

"I'm simply uninterested of your offer, Lady Basescu. I thought I had made it clear with the employees that I didn't take in any visitors. If you don't mind, I have more important things to do." I stood up from where I was and started walking away.

I was aware of her following me but I didn't bother looking back. I went straight to the study and closed the door. It was too bad that she put a hand on the handle on time because it would have shut on her face.

I didn't like this woman even one bit. She was older than me—that makes her a pedophile. Well, as guardians, we couldn't really choose who we'll guard, but my case was different. I had the freedom to choose mine and I would _never_ choose _this_ woman.

"Look, Dimitri," she started babbling about things that I had no interest of saying. I just simply gazed on a painting, finding it less tedious than the woman's prattling. "—if you won't accept it, I don't have a choice but to report this to the Royal Court. Surely the Queen would do something —" I left her prattling about how she'll turn me over to the court for justice.

She was not only a stalker and a pedophile. She was also a control freak.

I pressed the button under the study's table. I never really used this emergency button before but I was sure I needed this now. The woman was getting on my nerves. I couldn't afford to lose any more of my reputation.

I heard loud and fast footsteps and guards in their uniform came bursting in the room. They didn't need to ask me who I wanted to get rid off—Elena was practically screaming at me when they got in. The guards took one look at her and escorted her out of the room, leaving the place quiet and peaceful again.

You might have been wondering why these guards could do these things to other Moroi—even royals. It was because that the family (my father's family) was one of the most important families in the whole Moroi world. Elena back there was a lower class royal, practically an ordinary Moroi. Not that I'm boasting, but my father's family… well, they're quite influential.

It wasn't long when I heard a car leave the palace then a phone ring. It was the study's phone.

I picked it up at the fourth ring.

"Belikov, speaking."

"How are you?" I didn't need to ask who the caller was. It was quite obvious, knowing he was supposed to be an army and all.

"Why do you ask?"

He chuckled. "You never change," was all he said.

"Why did you call?" I knew that these questions were stupid but what do I have to say?

"Just wanted to check how things were. Were girls harassing you?"

"I'm flattered that you want to know about my welfare but I assure you, I can handle myself." I said with a faint trace of sarcasm.

"No, I just wanted to tell you that I'll be coming back there within a week. How long are you going to be staying?" he asked and I could hear the faintest hint of melancholy in his voice.

"No definite answer to that," I was more than a little surprised at how I sounded. From the week that I had been here, many things have changed. My outlook in life has changed, my self-control was slacking, but still, the pain inside me was still here. But time makes it easier, making me feel stronger than I thought I could ever be.

"You sound better." One thing that I had found in common with us, we weren't really the talking type of people.

I just grunted my reply; I knew well that he understood what that meant.

"I should probably go now… Someone's waiting for me." He said a while later.

"Business?"

"Something like that," he said, told me a goodbye, and then hung up.

I sighed and relaxed on the chair. His study was big. Complete with leather chairs and mahogany tables and other stuff that he got from military school. He had his badges on a frame, books were stuffed everywhere and there was a painting. Only one painting. The one I'd been staring at the whole time when Elena accused me of murder that I did not commit.

The painting was beautiful, if you'd ask me. More than beautiful, it was amazing. Beyond amazing, stunning.

I stood up from where I was to admire it.

A girl was on the painting. A beautifully-shaped girl with the most lustrous dark hair I'd ever seen. Even through the painting, I could almost feel how her hair would be against my mere mortal fingers. She was wearing a flowing red dress that made her skin glow in an almost inhuman way. And then her face—the face was exquisite; it could only be owned by a goddess. Her face was perfect; complete with big, heavy-lidded dark eyes, long straight nose, high cheekbones and full ruby red lips.

She was facing the painter, her gloved hand lightly touching her collar bone and her eyes were set in a manner that could only be seductive.

The background of the painting was beautiful itself too, but not as much as the girl starring.

It took me time to tear my eyes away from the girl on the painting and search for a signature. The one who painted this could be better than Picasso or Da Vinci themselves. It was an award-worthy painting.

Just below the painting, it was barely visible through the rays of colors.

_08-20-08_

_Beautiful Stranger_

_M.R._

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**Ah, the long waited revelation. It is out.**

**I hoped you liked the short chapter. And I, too, don't appreciate my crappy writing. I'm hurrying, my laptop's battery's dying! Ten minutes more!**

**Leave a purty REVIEW.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate :D**


	11. Macabre

**Heya!!! Sorry if you didn't like the last chapter, but I promise, this chapter will leave you hanging.**

**Enjoy :D**

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**Chapter Nine**

**Macabre**

"Here you go, dear." The nice, redheaded woman said as she handed me a cup of hot chocolate. It was cold out and I was wet from the rain. She put a blanket on my shoulders and patted my head.

I looked at Maxim who was smirking.

"She's nice," I said a while later. I could hear Lizbeth doing something in the kitchen. Cooking, perhaps.

Maxim nodded. "They don't have children, so this is fresh for her."

I raised a brow, but, as always, failed. "They don't?"

He nodded again, diamonds of water dropping from his wet hair. "They can't have children. That's why they took me in like their own child when I first visited here."

"You visit here from time to time?"

He half-smiled. "I really like animals," he admitted to me in a whisper.

"You like them, too." I told him and I knew that I was right.

He smiled, showing his fangs. My heart made a little leap at that. "They were the closest thing to family."

I smiled at him and took his hand. It was cold but comforting. "How about me?" I asked him, trying to sound playful.

_Ugh_, one part of me said. _You're not like this, Rose._

"From the first time I met you, Rose, I already knew that you'd be a part of it." he said in a soft voice.

I squeezed his hand. "That's sweet of you."

Our talk was interrupted by Lizbeth bringing in freshly made donuts.

"Donuts," I gasped

"Go ahead. Eat all you want. More coco for you, Max?" she asked.

The name Max triggered something in me. I unconsciously touched my collar bone where a muscle slightly moved. Or so that was what I felt.

I turned to look at Maxim with a slightly alarmed expression. "Max?"

He nodded slowly like he was reluctant. "Max is my nickname." Talk about obvious, but… it wasn't the name that I was puzzled about… I don't really know, my brain was kinda jumbled up.

"Is something wrong, Rose?"

I looked up at him and shook my head slowly. I wasn't sure if I was alright. Damn, what the hell happened to me?

"You need to forgive Pops for smoking; it's his way of medication." Lizbeth told us when she was back with Maxim's cup. She sat down next to us and relaxed. She was a beautiful woman for her age; I could see why Gilbert adored her. She looked extremely young, too, but she had faint laugh lines on the corner of her lips and eyes. Her eyes were wide, piercing blue. "So, tell me, when did you two meet? Last time we saw Max, he was still lonely, right Pops?"

Gilbert grunted a reply.

Lizbeth looked at me with a soft, motherly smile. "I love to hear love stories." She told me.

I felt a little uncomfortable; I was not really a romantic type of girl who was okay to spread her life, so that's why I said, "It was hate at first sight." I looked at Maxim for help but he seemed to enjoy my chagrin.

I didn't have a choice but to continue.

***Maxim's Jaguar***

"You seem awfully quiet today," I said while looking out the window. The rain hadn't picked up but it didn't stop either.

"Huh?" he gave me a short glance and turned back to the wet road. "Oh, why do you think I'd been?"

"It's unusual that you don't talk." I told him with a slightly annoyed tone. "Pardon me if I'm wrong but I think you're the only one who talks in car rides, mostly."

He didn't respond but he let out a small smile.

"Hello, I'm talking to you." I shifted on my seat so I was facing Maxim now.

He looked at me with a slightly apologetic smile. "I was just thinking,"

I raised one brow questioningly.

He started up the car and we drove for silence within one minute.

"I'm going back to Germany as soon as you're back at the academy." He told me.

He had told me before that he had lived at Germany for five years after his father died. It was his real home, and he had told me that he felt more at home there. The mountains were his best friend and the cold weather there was normal for him. Their palace was just near the Bavarian Alps, which was no surprise to me, noting that he had mentioned mountains and cold weather.

I didn't know why, but I stiffened. I looked up at him with a slightly confused look. "Going back to your home for winter?" I asked him.

He nodded slowly. "I'm meeting somebody, too."

"I hope it's not a girl." I mumbled, barely audible.

"I assure you, it's not what you think it is." He told me, his eyes glittering with amusement.

I scowled at him and ignored him.

***Back at the palace***

I was sulking. I don't know why, but the way I acted towards Maxim, it was clear that I was.

"Hey, Lissa's coming over tomorrow. I hope you don't mind." I had said during dinner. I hadn't looked up from my plate when I said that.

"Of course. Any friend of yours is welcome in my house." He'd replied in a jolly tone.

I ignored his tone and said, "Thanks," stood up with the plate I was using on my hand and dumped it on the sink. To my utter haste, I hadn't even remembered that I was just supposed to leave the plates there back at the table for the servants to get. But then, I didn't care.

I avoided Maxim every time he walked up to me. Once, I was lounging at the swing on the gazebo by the lagoon, he attempted to talk but I walked away—clearly ignoring him. I knew that it sounded childish and immature, but my pride wouldn't back down. And dignity, too.

Three hours later that day, Lisssa called from Paris.

"I can't wait to see him, Rose!" Lissa practically screamed through the phone, I had to put some space between the phone and my ear.

"How about me?" I asked, sounding like a jealous teen.

"Aw… do I have to say it? I thought you already know!"

"Can't read your emotions now, Lissa, remember?"

"Oh, right…" there was an uncomfortable silence building up.

"Um… I'm really excited to see you tomorrow, Lissa. I missed you so much." I told her, cutting off the silence. "And Pyro, too."

Lissa giggled, thankfully over the dire contemplation. "You won't be missing us for long. Aunt Tasha booked an earlier flight and instead of arriving at night, we'll be arriving tomorrow morning. We're headed to the airport now."

"Really?" My excitement grew and my earlier glum feelings gone. "Please, Lissa! Come straight here to the palace! I'm _really_ lonely!" Okay, the last part was an exaggeration, but still.

Lissa giggled again, making me chuckle a little too. You must have noticed why I don't giggle. The answer's simple—it's just not my thing.

"Will Maxim mind?" she asked, a little hesitant.

"If he does, I'll guarantee he has his brain bashed at his precious marble floor." I joked and Lissa—if possible—giggled louder. "What's with the fits, Lissa? Got a feather on your butt?"

"No…" she gasped for air. "It's just that—you're so funny. I never heard you make a joke before, Rose. Usually, you're so serious with a no-nonsense attitude."

It was my time to giggle. Er, it wasn't really a giggle but it was the best girly laugh I could let out. "Yeah, thanks to the undisciplined nature I'm in."

It was already late in the afternoon and the wind was chilly. A chamber maid happened to pass by at where I was. I was sitting at the swing under an oak pergola at the back of the palace. I hid here at the back of the palace for two reasons. One was just to avoid and annoy Maxim. And two, Maxim had told me to stay away from here. He didn't elaborate on why I shouldn't be lingering here. That still remained a mystery to me.

When she saw me, she curtsied and politely asked if she could do something for me.

"Can you get my jacket? It's just at the back of my room's door. It's red, hard to miss." I told the chamber maid, covering my cell phone's receiver. She nodded politely and walked off. "Hey, Liss, sorry about that."

"Oh, Rose, Tasha says hi. And Christian says,"—I heard mumbles from the end of the line— "_Christian_!" I heard Lissa exclaim in her chastising tone. "That is _so_ not funny." I heard laughter from the other line. I swear that I kind of felt a little jealous of Lissa. She just had her life so easy. She could hang out with people without having to worry about their safety. She could be _reckless_, _carefree_… and all those stuff normal teens do.

I felt a vague sense of déjà vu that I had had this mental chatter before. Yeah, I know I had. It happened when Abe unlocked the doors within me. I had burst shouting, practically screaming how unfair my life was. I smiled at the memory. I missed Abe—the insane knee-blasting machine.

Abe and I had just known each other for a week or two but—despite the shortness of time—we had known each other like we were never separated for seventeen years. I was fond of that crazy mobster dude with his bad-ass goons. Hell, I even think I love the mobster dude.

Just thinking about loved ones made my heart ache, so I switched my attention back to the phone conversation. Christian and Lissa were still bickering. I sighed and listened to them bicker through the phone.

Lissa and Christian feud was about how _not_ polite Christian was at greeting people. I figured Christian had said something that made Lissa feel responsible to lecture him. I even heard Christian's aunt joining in—chiding his nephew.

"—you are a royal! You shouldn't question things that are so impersonal. You'd insult that person—" blah blah blah, Lissa went on.

"Not to mention that you're a decent looking boy." I heard Christian's aunt say. "Well, except for your hair. You need to get a haircut. But anyway—"

I yawned loudly the same time the palace's lights turned off. I tensed in my seat.

I had been too occupied by Lissa's chiding that I hadn't noticed that the sky was completely dark now. And with all the lights off, I could barely see. Without my dhampir vision, I should've only seen pitch black by now. But with my dhampir vision, I could make out shapes, just not the colors.

"Hey, Liss," I said through the phone. I had this overwhelming instinct that I shouldn't make too much noise.

Miraculously, Lissa got back to the phone. "Sorry about that, Rose. Christian had been—"

"Can I call you later?" I cut her off. "There's a black-out in the palace and I can't see anything."

"Oh, sure! Careful, Rose. Love you, bye."

"Okay. Love you, too." I replied and hung up.

I stood up from where I was slowly, not wanting to make any noise. I had this weird feeling in my gut that something was going to happen in any minute. Though a feeling was just a feeling. I couldn't make out if it was bad or not.

I slowly paced toward the palace's back door and got inside. It was the main kitchen and I had about a mile to walk if I want to go to my room. The palace was very big and that's no joke. Despite the three storey construction, the palace was wide.

I unconsciously bumped into some things on my way to my room and hadn't seen a ghost in the house. It was weird that the place was isolated. Normally, chamber maids were always milling around the place, but now there wasn't anybody in the place.

Finally, I succeeded climbing the stairs toward the second floor without tripping. I confidently strode the hallway but my confidence was short-lived. I felt something twist in my gut… something _terrible_ was here.

I walked slowly, not making a single sound. The only thing I heard was the thundering of my heart audible in my own ears. I was halfway to my room when I heard a scream. I froze.

The scream wasn't a free shout. It was cut off short with a gurgle… then nothing.

The lights went on and I felt a little lighter than before but I was still paralyzed. I worked hard on my muscles to move. As soon as I rounded on the corner toward my room, I smelled something different.

My door was cracked open an inch or two. I didn't want to touch the door so I kicked the door open.

As soon as I caught sight of the place, it looked exactly the same when I had left them. Except for the body on my bed.

Her pale eyes were horribly dead and her body was twisted in a grotesque manner. There was blood gushing out of the open wound on her neck that dripped on the bed's cover. I froze on my place again. I couldn't take my eyes away from the girl's dead pale grey eyes. It stared at me as if to accuse me, "You did this to me!" I didn't know how long I stayed there shaking but the next thing I knew was that I was pulled into someone's chest.

"Ssshhh… It's alright, Rose."

I didn't even notice that I was heaving in gasps of shock. My eyes prickled with tears and I just couldn't hold them back now. "Oh, my God…"

Maxim rubbed my back as if to offer soothing. "Don't think about it, Rose. It's alright." He chanted over and over again.

"She's dead," I managed to say. I stood there with Maxim's comforting arms around me. "It's my fault."

"It's not your fault." He told me and caressed my hair.

"Young master, should I call the police?" another person asked. The voice sounded familiar but I just couldn't put a name on who it was.

"Not now. Just clean the room and cremate her."

I should've told Maxim to call the police at least but I couldn't form the words because dark blotches were surrounding my vision, drowning me into their promises of oblivion again. For the first time, I didn't fight it. Everything went black.

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**So, how was the chapter? I hope you liked it.**

**The mysteries are starting to grow… and an event is getting near.**

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	12. Murders are Inhuman

**Chapter Eleven**

**Murders are Inhuman**

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The voice around me was not speaking English. For some reason, that frayed some of my nerves.

"You know, it's not very polite to speak in a language some people can't understand." I said, not really aware that I haven't ordered my mouth to speak.

The voice stopped talking.

"Rose, you're awake." the voice sounded familiar, but I still couldn't put a name on it.

"Half-conscious only," my voice replied and my mind drifted… into darkness. I still couldn't see and I didn't know why. "Dammit, Maxim, what happened to my eyes? Why can't I see? Don't tell me I'm blind, 'cause I don't have any medical insurance for that sort of problem." I grumbled and tried to move from where I was.

The voice didn't say anything.

"I'm blind, am I?" I was surprised at how small my voice sounded.

The voice sighed. "Nothing too drastic, Rose. Your eyes are closed. Open them so you can see again." And was that sarcasm there?

I immediately felt stupid for saying my fears out loud. I attempted to laugh but it came out hard and forced. "I knew that,"

"I'm sure you did." was all Maxim said before he continued to talk on the phone in another language. I could hear my name mixed with them… the sound of the language made me think of Russia. Yeah, I think they were talking in Russian. And other than the language he was speaking, I could point out that there were anger and irritation mingled with the glibness of his tone.

I slowly opened my eyes—not wanting to blind myself if there was a light above me. Fortunately, there wasn't any blinding lamp in front of my eyes. Slowly, I took in my surroundings in a painstakingly cautious manner. I wasn't in a room that I recognized, so I relaxed a little. I remembered what happened last night… or a while ago… what time was it?

"What time is it?" I asked out loud.

Maxim said a curt goodbye on the phone and turned to look at me with—I was very surprised to see—a slightly mad expression. Okay, let's just erase the _slightly _part because he looked… er, his face was flushed, and the look on his eyes were so conflicting that I couldn't get a read o them. "It's quarter to five. You're friend just called to say that she's coming." He said briskly and paced restlessly around the room.

"Did you tell her what happened?"

He shrugged, but it didn't look too elegant now. It was done a bit rashly and irritably. "It wasn't my information to withdraw."

"Gee, thanks." I said, more than a little sarcastic than I had intended it to be. I regretted it as soon as it left my mouth.

He gave me a heated glare. "Sarcasm doesn't help you with anything, Rose." he told me and dismissed me by looking away, pacing all over the room like a mad man.

I straightened at his retort. "Oh yeah, it doesn't help you to be impolite to someone who just fainted—" I did my mental math thing, "—approximately nine hours ago."

"It's not my fault you fainted, Rose!" Maxim practically roared.

I stared at him, dumbfounded, but I quickly recovered myself. "It's your house, Maxim! You should have been more careful with the things surrounding you!" I shouted too, letting out all my pent-up anger on him. "That chamber maid—that girl—she was inside my room because I asked her to get something in there. It should have been me who was killed there, Maxim. You're missing the obvious." I said in a calmer tone, but deep inside, I was raging. How dare he? That was the only coherent question I could form inside my conflicting thoughts.

"Your fainting just made things worse. I have a lot of things on my plate right now, Rose." he spoke like he hadn't heard me.

"Oh, so you're saying that I am just an addition to your problems. That me fainting was a shit-load of problem on your plate." I said angrily. "Well, let me tell you, Romanov, you shouldn't have bothered picking me up back at the academy." I spoke in a voice filled with venom. I should check on my emotions more often. It was flying everywhere and Maxim's accusations didn't help a bit.

I ran my hands through my hair to calm me down. It didn't do anything helpful so I got off the bed, a little wobbly but I recovered my posture. I saw Maxim stop pacing around. I looked at him and took in his expression. He was fighting for calm, which was sure.

"You know, I thought you were different." _ Like my Dimitri_, I couldn't help but add internally. I was about to add something when I saw his expression change. He looked frustrated and… somehow, calm.

He ran his hands through his messy hair and closed his eyes tightly as if trying to shake off something. "I'm sorry, Rose." he said in a strained voice. "I'm taking out my frustration on you. I was just so mad that I let this murder happen. Inside my own home." he shook his head in disbelief and looked at me in a way that was almost pleading. "I don't blame you if you're mad at me. You have every right to be. I was being callous on my words. I was rude, I was—"

"Brusque, impertinent, gruff, primitively vulgar—take your pick. I got lots more of synonyms in my brain." I knew that I couldn't go anywhere with sarcasm, but I was still raging.

"Call me all the things you want, Rose. I'll accept them." He said in an actually bored voice.

His indifference angered me more. "You know, I'll just tell you this. You're a _royal_." I said coldly. I glared at him. "You're just the same. You all are. You're all—" I thought of a suitable insult for him, "—fascist bastards. Guys are chauvinists; girls are shallow with an exception for some."

He looked at me in a way that said, "Are you done now?"

I wasn't done yet. I had a lot more to spit, but instead of saying more insults that would break his barrier, I held my chin high and stalked out of the room. Before I could close the door, I called, "And just for the record, I can take care of myself. I'm not a fucking Mary Sue for you to save at all times." I wasn't _the_ Rose Hathaway for no reason.

I knew that it was bad to ignore Maxim's warnings of me to stay away from the back of the palace, but I felt a lot better there. And I should say that I didn't feel any better inside the house. Just thinking about my old room… it raised goose bumps on my arms.

It was still five in the morning and the sun was still a few hours until it got up. As soon as I made my escape at the back of the house, I started strolling towards the pergola I was at last night. It was cold, yeah, but nothing I couldn't handle.

Somehow, I felt kind of chilled to the bones—automatically making me realize that I was being stupid and acting helpless. I shook that off and told myself that the dawn was young so there were no people up to trouble right now. It was past the witching hour too, so fears were not needed and wanted.

I continued to walk deeper at the back of the palace and found the cobblestone pathway leading to the big oak pergola. When I was now walking halfway—I felt the same terrible feeling that I had felt yesterday at the hallway to my room. I immediately slowed down my steps and shifted to my guardian mode. Technically, I wasn't a guardian yet, but I had reflexes. And I was taught well, too.

I suddenly felt really annoyed at myself for not bringing my stake with me. What if there was a Strigoi nearby? That idea seriously plagued me the entire time I cautiously walked toward the pergola. When I was near enough to see the pergola, my mind and body didn't numb like it did last night.

"Oh, shit," I cursed and continued walking slowly.

When you're a detective, you might first realize that this kind of attempt of murder would be suicide—not homicide. But it was clear that from what happened last night, it was unlikely for someone to kill themselves. And how the heck can they tie themselves without anyone's help?

The body hanging on the rope was still swaying back and forth as if it was still hung there not so long ago. I analyzed everything around me, but everything seemed to be clean. I avoided looking at the butler's eyes, afraid that I'll lock up like what I did last night.

With so much hesitation, I put a hand on the floating body to stop it from moving. It was scary that a person this tall could be killed so easily. Then again, Jameson was now an old man. I felt pity for him and Maxim, they had been so close.

I touched Jameson's dead body's hand to see if there was still a pulse, but evidently, there was none. His body still was cold enough to be pronounced as dead for a couple of hours, but the weather could have made his body cool all too easily.

I didn't look up to see Jameson's pale face. If I would, I was sure what would I see. I would see dull eyes staring at me accusingly. With that thought, nausea rose. I gripped one of the pergola's posts and fought hard to not throw up. Dammit, I was getting soft… and I didn't like it even one bit. I had killed Strigoi before and I'm afraid of looking at dead bodies' faces!

Huh, Rose Hathaway laughs at the sight of death!

"I should be awarded for having such a strong stomach," I said to myself and straightened myself. I climbed up at the pergola and untied the rope that hung Jameson's stiff dead body. I just couldn't leave poor Jameson there hanging if I'd call for help—it looked and sounded so crude to leave him on his previous spot. I lay his dead body on the pergola's cemented floor, and then turned back to call for help.

But before I could leave the pergola, I could see Maxim was there, jogging toward me with a concerned expression on his face.

But when he saw the body at my back, he blanched.

"It's Jameson," I told him in a surprisingly unaffected voice. I must be numb.

Maxim stared at Jameson's body for two seconds before he looked at me. "Are you okay?" he walked to me with a soothing gesture. "You look like you're about to—"

"Spill my guts out? Yeah, but that isn't on list of planned activities to do today." I said and shrugged, really indifferent. Yes, I _was_ numb.

He nodded understandingly and held my arm whilst he dragged me to the kitchen. He exchanged a few words with his minions and offered me tea so that my nausea would ease a bit. I gladly gulped them down, only half-aware of the bitter taste of it.

"I'm a dead body magnet," I told him a while later.

He gazed at me with a sad expression on his face. He attempted to smile. "No, you're not. There's just been some things going on." He said evasively.

"Murder isn't as humane as you think it is, Maxim. I think we should call the police."

"No, we cannot involve humans in this case." He answered brusquely.

"At least tell me what's happening. I've seen two dead people in less than twelve hours." I told him with a terribly exasperated sigh. "You don't know how disturbing those things are. And in case you haven't noticed, I hung out there at the pergola last night, too."

He looked up, looking outraged. "I told you not to stay there!"

I shrugged. "Not my fault. I was mad at you; I had no way out of you in your house except for the place you forbade me to go."

He leaned close to me on the table. "Rose, please be reasonable. I'm trying to do things right in here." He told me and I could now see that he looked tired. There were dark circled under his eyes. His eyes lost their brightness, too. It was a dull now, just looking plainly green, no hint of the aquatic glint in them.

"Sorry," I said grudgingly and looked down at the tea cup. It was a rare case for me to apologize. Let alone say things sincerely. "I really am trouble." I grumbled, self-pity increasing.

Maxim didn't bother denying that. "You are trouble." He smiled an amused smile. "From the first time I met you, I knew that you were." He leaned back on his seat and squeezed at his temple.

I stood up from my seat and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" Maxim called.

Instead of answering his question, I asked him a question. "Have they cleaned my former room upstairs?"

"They just changed the sheets. Why?"

"Oh, nothing." I said and waved him off. I heard the chair scrape on the marble floor.

"Rose, you're not going to play Sherlock Holmes, are you?" he asked me when he caught hold of my arm.

"I think I am." I answered him honestly.

"I can see that arguing with you would be a crap-load of burden, so I'll just go with you while you're going to investigate."

"No thanks?" it came out as a question.

"Nice try, but you're not going to get rid of me that easily."

I grimaced at him when his cell phone rang. He held up one finger at me and answered it in Russian. I made a quick escape from Maxim and I was about to climb the stairs when I heard a car horn honk.

Curious, I ran towards the palace's huge main entrance…

And there she was, my best friend—early and looking worried.

"Oh, Rose!" she exclaimed and flung herself at me.

"Hey, Liss," I gently hugged her back.

"Rose, you're—" I heard Maxim say. I looked back at him and raised a brow.

"What?" I mouthed.

"I think we have a situation here." He said and welcomed Christian and Lissa with his usual charm despite the deaths he had seen.

"What's wrong?" I asked Maxim after he welcomed Lissa and Christian.

"It's your father. He's coming."

I felt my eyes go wide like saucers. "What?!" I hadn't intended my voice to sound so sharp. "When?! And why?!"

He shrugged again. "We're taking you somewhere." was all he said before another man stepped in the doorway with two men flanked on his side.

"Ibrahim Mazur," Maxim made a formal bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you again."

"It's always a pleasure to meet you, Lord Romanov, but I think we should be moving now." Abe's voice was as blank as his expression.

"As you wish, Ibrahim. I already called the academy."

"Hey, hey, hey," I cut them off. I scrutinized their faces, but they were both good at keeping straight faces. "What's this about?" I asked them both, my face scrunched up in scorn.

"Your questions will be answered afterward, Rosemarie. We have to get moving. _Now_." Abe said in a dry tone, but I could hear impatience dripping.

Great, just great. Why does my life have to be this way?

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**Did you like it?**

**Poor Jameson… Oh, well, murders are inevitable but if it's happening in one place in less time, it gets really suspicious… and scary.**

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**Kate :D**

**P.S. I'm terribly sorry if I have many typos and wrong grammars**—**I'm too lazy to check 'em.**


	13. Landing on a Mountain

**Hey, y'all! Thanks for all your reviews!!!**

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**Chapter Twelve**

**Landing on a Mountain**

"Okay," I pivoted to look at the men at my back. Sure, maybe I could take them both, but did I have the guts to? I think not. "Where the heck are we going?"

We were in a private runway somewhere at the back of the Romanov palace—which justifies how rich Maxim was.

"Rose, we're taking you to a place where no one will dare to go after you." Maxim said in a soothing voice, intended to calm me down.

"_Please_," I said, "be fucking specific."

"Rosemarie," Abe snapped and his gaze bore into mine. It was my first time to see him mad at me. "Watch your language."

I shut up—I didn't want to push my luck. If I'd talk back, I'd probably have my knee-caps blasted—Abe didn't choose who he'd victimized with his gun. Or bare hands. "Fine," I grumbled and started up the glossy black jet's stairs. "But you still owe me answers," I called over my shoulder and practically bolted to the farthest seat on the jet. I was—I admit—scared of Abe, though just a teenie-tiny bit like smithereens.

I was lucky enough that Lissa and Christian were allowed to come with me. I had insisted that Lissa would go everywhere I go. Abe was not too happy about that, but he granted it.

"The old man's hiding something from me," I mumbled when Lissa sat down beside me.

She smiled. "Maybe he's just doing that to protect you, Rose."

I snorted. "I don't need any protecting, Liss. If I can take care of a royal Moroi, I certainly can take care of myself."

"I've heard about the murders back there, Rose." Lissa sounded very sad. I wish I could pull that dark emotion away from her, but we didn't have a bond now so it was useless. "It's a serious case, Rose. You have to understand."

I should have snapped back some snide remarks, but I was afraid Lissa would feel worse than she already was. I said nothing.

"I'm sorry if I'm siding with your dad, Rose, but we have the same intentions. We just want to protect you."

I sighed heavily. "It's alright. I was being irrational anyway."

***10 hours later***

"It's snowing,"

"Yes, places in Europe are somehow colder than back there at the US." Lissa answered me. She had the tendency to answer every question everybody asks—even rhetorical ones.

I nodded, taking in the view of the beautiful white mountains of the Alps.

"Those are the Bavarian Alps," Lissa told me, pointing at the window.

"We're in… _Germany_?" I asked in disbelief. I turned to look at Lissa, who was nodding. "Why the heck would they bring us in Germany?" I wondered aloud. And then I was too slow to realize. "_Maxim_," I nodded slowly.

Lissa just smiled at me.

"Well, hell," I breathed and practically shoved my face on the jet's glass window. "It looks wonderful, I give Maxim that."

A pretty girl announced to put on our plane seat belts because we were landing. I looked at her, agape.

"We're landing in a mountain?" I murmured to Lissa.

She looked out the window and her eyes lit up. "Look!" she pointed out the window. I looked at where she was pointing at and—sure enough—there was one red blinking light over the fog of snow. And just over half a mile of that light was… yeah, a tower with a perfectly coned spire and a flag at the tip of it.

We put on our seat belts without clearly looking at them. Our eyes were fixed on the castle.

"This is what he calls a _home_." I said in disbelief.

Ten minutes later, we landed on the cleared-up runway. I couldn't believe it—it was too amazing to believe that I could be in this place. It looked like it should be owned by some King or something. Of course, I knew that Maxim was royalty, but not like this. _This _palace could surpass Queen Tatiana's palace. _This_ was not a palace, though. It was a castle. Complete with domes, buttresses, gargoyles, flags, and all those ye olden days stuff.

Just at the front of the jet, I could see a solitary tower, about more than a hundred feet tall. There was a guy with a shot gun there. He looked scary as hell with his muscled-up body and—I presume—always angry expression. He took one swift look at each person that got out of the jet and made a curt bow to Maxim. Maxim nodded at him. I swore there was a fond glint on his eyes when he looked at the guy. Was Maxim… _gay_? No, he couldn't be.

I gave him a sidelong and sure enough, he did my suspicions injustice. So, he's _not_ gay.

I walked behind his gorgeously tall form, and roamed my eyes around me. The castle was surrounded with countless alpine, fir, and spruce trees whitened with snow. The snowy ground was dotted with some iron benches and lamp posts. I couldn't help but note that the Romanov palace back at Montana was, somehow, architecturally similar to his home. But this castle was obviously more medieval than the one in Montana.

We walked on the stone pathway that led to the castle's stone breezeway.

"This looks outstanding, Lord Romanov." Lissa piped up when we were already sheltered inside the castle's back entrance. The back was breath-taking. The place was highlighted with stained glass windows and the floor was as marble and pretty as the one back at Montana. Just at the top of where we were standing up was a huge crystal chandelier. I guess that was the center-piece of this place was the amazing chandelier. The walls were renovated into dark colors, which made it look like a haunted place for once.

Like the Romanov palace back at Montana, the walls were dotted with some of Maxim's paintings. All in all, this place in the castle passed my liking test.

"Welcome to the Romanov castle." A butler said, gesturing to the room. The butler just looked like Jameson, tall, pale and skinny. "Young master, you have not notified me that you were coming early." The butler said, directing it too Maxim.

Maxim made a rueful motion with his hands. "I am sorry, Dominic, but our departure was unexpected. I could not notify you any further."

Whoa, talk about speaking old school.

Dominic smiled; it reminded me of Jameson's skinny smile. "All is well, young master. You have nothing to distress about, we prepared in advance for your arrival." He said and gestured toward the arching door at one side of the room. "The sitting room is this way," he spoke loudly and led us to another breath-taking room.

The sitting room was indescribable; the colors were all suited for royals. The place was so amazing; I couldn't remember my own name.

"Wow," Lissa breathed.

I kept quiet.

"You have one hell of a place, dude." For the first time, Christian spoke.

Maxim looked back to see Christian smirking at him. "Thank you,"

***Couple o' hours later***

I was lost. Yeah, I was so lost that I wandered into a huge room with walls made out of leather bound books. I guess this was the study. A _huge_ study. There were about six long oak tables with dozens of seats in this side of the study. There was another opening at the side of the room and I went straight there.

I nearly stumbled on a grey Tabby cat. It looked up to me with piercing green eyes and hissed. Animals, in general, didn't like dhampirs. That was a blessing in disguise too, I disliked them in return. Well, except for Draco the horse. Our feelings toward each other were mutual. We worked well together.

I was about to enter the open room when voices stopped me.

I felt my heart tug at the same voices that came out of the open room. They weren't speaking in English, neither did it sound German. The two similar voices were hushed but angry. Sounds like somebody was having a heated argument in Russian. I would have peeked if there wasn't a dog on the way. Yeah, it was a huge Blood Hound, sleeping.

_So much for being a sentry_, I wanted to say to the dog.

As if reading my mind, the dog's nose moved and it slowly opened its eyes. Its dark eyes landed on mine. I had expected it to pounce directly on me or bark for his master to announce there was an intruder, but instead of doing those normal sentry dog stuff, he just looked at me with one eye peeked. As if bored, it closed its eyes again and went back to its slumber.

I didn't push my luck then—I turned on my heels and walked as fast as I could out of the study.

As soon as I got out of the study, I was—again—surrounded by doors. I picked the one in front of me and as soon as I opened it, cold splashed to my face. I looked out at the snow-surrounded place and padded out. I had my jacket on because my dhampir immunity to the weather couldn't possibly endure this cold a temperature.

I heard my boots crunch on the snow. It sounded so good; it made me want to hear more of them. The snow in this place looked like it was untouched and fresh from the sky because there were no footsteps nor were there anything on the snow. The iron benches were covered with snow, too.

I looked at the woods beyond me. They didn't look too inviting. They raised goose-bumps on my arms, and I felt a now familiar feeling of being chilled to the bones. I felt ridiculous as to why I was feeling these things whenever I go out somewhere. Instead of heading back to the palace, I dared myself to face my fear. The Rose Hathaway does not back away from her fears—she meets them.

I held my chin high and padded toward the murky woods. The place was gloomy, but it was usual for the mountains during late fall.

The feeling got a lot worse as I got nearer and nearer. I refused to wrap my arms around myself and I walked faster, my chin still high. I followed where my dire led me. It wasn't so deep inside of the woods when I found the most gruesome of all first-hand murders I'd seen.

"No, shit." I gasped out, my breath clouding in front of my face. "Another body?"

The skull looked like it exploded. It didn't even look like it was a skull anymore. There were tiny red smithereens of…_ things_ on the white snow, and lots of… chunks.

I felt nausea raise and I fought back about all the food that I had eaten since the last day. It was my worst nausea case, and it was not a Strigoi alert. I—again—refused to spill my guts out and check the crime scene.

The way the skull exploded made me think that a weapon was used. A gun, to be certain. I didn't have the guts to look further inside of the brains to check out if there were bullets. I know that I had mentioned earlier that Rose Hathaway laughs at the sight of death, but I was not that cold-blooded. I had a heart, too, you know.

His hands looked like it was pinned at his back while this happened because it was placed awkwardly on his lower back. I didn't know who this guy was, but I felt a surge of pity.

I looked around the snow for foot prints and sure enough, there were two pairs of them. One was from the deeper side of the woods. Its direction stopped just behind the body, which meant this was the victim's. And the other one was from my right side; I didn't know where that led so I assumed that it was the exit.

"Damn," I swore and said a little prayer for the dead guy.

As soon as I was done, I heard the snow crunch. It was only a few crunches, but it was it was very near me now. Long legs can help one with that, I noted.

My instincts got the best of me. I took my stake from my jacket's inner pocket and faced the intruder.

As soon as I saw him, he took my breath away. The guy was very tall. The guy had dark hair. The guy had dark eyes. The guy had a leather duster on.

All of those features were owned by the guy who had truly captured my heart.

But now, what was he? Was he the enemy now? _My_ enemy? A serial killer?

His expression didn't change when he saw me and it hurt me. It made me want to go down on my knees and beg for him to remember me. Or curl into a ball and bawl my eyes out. Both were pretty bad images for the Rose Hathaway, but I didn't care. But then, I didn't do anything. I was stuck there on my cat stance, ready to pounce.

The only reaction he gave was a raise of his hands and he said in perfect German, "Ich habe ihn nicht töten ,"

I knew that it was German because of the _ich_. The rest of the phrase was a total mystery to me. Slowly, I regained my composure and took his raised hands as a sign of peace.

_Dimitri_, I wanted to say, but I still didn't.

"What did you say?" I asked him, putting all the bravado in me.

A look of realization hit him for a nano-second. "You're American,"

I shook my head. "Nope, I'm not. Although I was just raised there." I was babbling! I realized.

"You're a guardian,"

"No," I shook my head, both frustrated and exasperated. "I'm still a novice." I told him, hoping he could remember.

He raised one brow up, making my knees feel like Jell-O. His stares never failed to make me weak. "You're my brother's…_ guest_."

Brother.

Brother. Who was that? Dimitri never told me that he had a brother living in the famous Bavarian Alps. Not to mention in a castle.

"You're brother?"

He shook his head and looked at the body at the back of me. "I would have believed you killed Carl if you weren't holding a stake." He told me, gesturing at the body.

He looked at the body like it wasn't showing off his internal organs.

I looked at him questioningly. I felt a bit horrified at how normal he acted. "What are you waiting for?! Call somebody to investigate the place!"

"If I do, would you keep quiet?" he asked. Through the seriousness of his voice, I could make out he was teasing slightly.

I was getting mad. Boy, how my temper shifts from hot to cold was way beyond me.

"What the hell, Belikov?" I didn't mean to say that, but it slipped out of my mouth without my permission.

He raised one brow up again. "What did you just say?" he asked.

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**Was that a cliffie? No? Yes? Dunno?**

**Dimitri's baaaack! Wahooo! Who do you think is this friggin' serial killer?**

**I'll update as soon as I can, promised.**

**Love lots to my readers,**

**Kate :D**

**Xx**

**P.S. Same thing as yesterday. I'm getting lazy to check my grammars and typos, so it's a bit messy.**


	14. Infiltrated

**Hey guys! I was supposed to UD earlier but I was unable to because I was reading BURNED. LOL! Still not done, but so far, it's cool.**

**This is a shorter chapter than most, but I think this was worth uploading. :D**

**Enjoy. :D**

**Disclaimer: Vampire Academy is not mine.**

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**Chapter Thirteen**

**Infiltrated  
**

"_Bell cove_," I told him with a fake nonchalant poise. I smiled a tight, forced grin at him. "It's a place." I told him even though the lie on my tone was evident.

He eyed me for a second or two, but those seconds were everything I could wish for.

"I made it a swear word when it fell apart." I continued, my smile never wavering. I was glad to see him and all, but the situation we were in was more than a little awkward. Okay, our situation couldn't be covered up by awkward. Bluntly speaking, it was hysteria-worthy, but I gave myself a few brownie points for not running around like a mad woman.

He raised a brow again, but decided to let it go.

I mentally exclaimed in utter relief.

He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and started talking at top speed. Just half a minute passed, he angrily pressed something on the phone. He turned back to look at me.

"The guards will be taking care of this situation. Let them be." He told me and held his arm out for me to take. I couldn't help but note how old-fashioned and gentlemanly the act was. It was quite hard to believe that Dimitri had this trait on his sleeve. Then again, he seemed to _always_ have all the traits you want or don't want from him.

Even if I wanted so badly to throw my arms around him and kiss the lights out of him—I couldn't. I knew that he had taken my heart when he was compelled to leave and forget me, but he didn't take my conscience with him. I _have_ conscience. There were homicides in places everywhere I go and I knew that I had to stop them even if that means I had to leave Dimitri again.

_But I don't believe you would_, a part of me said.

If_ he remembers me_, I answered and physically backed away from Dimitri's outstretched arm.

I looked into Dimitri's dark, dark eyes and said, "You don't actually think that you're just gonna boss me around and tell me to stay out of this situation, do you?" I asked, a hint of anger on my voice. The anger there was mingled with a mild pint of desperation, but that was it.

Dimitri's brown eyes turned darker if that was possible. "If you are implying about my bluntness and animosity to you, then please forgive me." He said in his rich accented voice and made a small bow like people in the middle-ages did. He straightened from his bow and looked at me, the expressions on his face all but hidden behind that unyielding impassionate mask.

I would have believed that he was sorry if he was showing any bit sincerity.

"My name is Dimitri Belikov." He said. "I am a Guardian, yes, but I am not yet entitled with a charge."

That piqued my interest. "Yeah. Why don't _you_ have a charge?"

He looked at me in a way that said he didn't really care if I knew or not. "I was…" he paused as if groping for the right word to say. "…_unhappy_."

My heart fell for him, but I managed to ask him a question with an unaffected tone. "Would you mind me asking why you were _unhappy_?" I didn't know quite well what he was "unhappy" about.

A small part of my heart was hoping that he had remembered me after all, but his next words erased those last bits of hope.

He shook his head, telling me he didn't mind too well. "My family…" he said, and then avoided my gaze. "It's complicated." His voice rumbled like thunder, and it sent tiny sparks of pleasure through my skin. Just being with him this moment was incredibly divine.

I was about to tell him something a conspirator would say when I heard a dog bark. It was a very loud and slightly disturbing sound. Dimitri's head snapped up to search for the dog. He shouted something that sounded like "Agatha" but my ears were filled with the sound of the barking.

I heard more sounds now. There were shouts. Human shouts. They were all speaking in a language I didn't know, but I presume it was German. It sounded different to Russian, but it was still a delectable choice of language to speak. Even though I didn't know what they were saying, I could sense trouble.

I looked around the place to see if that trouble was here. It wasn't.

"Miss, you should go back inside." Dimitri said in an urgent tone.

"What's happening?"

He didn't hesitate. "The castle is infiltrated."

I felt my eyes widened and my alert mode turned on. "You mean somebody's a traitor here?"

He shook his head and looked around the place for something. "Traitor would be too mild a word, but that's the closest thing I could think of right now." He moved behind a tree and took a bloody sledge hammer and a dangerous-looking silver pistol. His face darkened with his expression. "The castle have lost more than one life today." He said and before I could move, he had hauled me to him—taking my arm and high-tailing me back to one of the castle's entrance.

I wrenched my arms away from him but it did no use. "What the fuck?! Let me go you crazy son of a bitch!" Now, I couldn't be too soft on him, can I?

We were just behind a huge tree when we heard a loud gun shot. The loudest that I have heard. The tree seemed to quiver at its wake. It was just a second later that my dhampir senses picked up gun powder, and saw that the tree we were leaning at was shot. Close one.

I could still hear people shouting, but Dimitri's strings of curse were more audible to me. I was fully aware that he was practically clutching me to his chest, but the gun shot just scared the shit out of me.

"What's happening now?" I asked him in a low whisper. The German exclamations of men were not as loud now, but from it, I could still smell the danger. "Who are those people shouting? Are they the infiltrators?"

"I didn't specifically say that there were more than one infiltrator, did I?"

One of the things I hated about Dimitri was that he couldn't answer a question straight.

I _almost_ rolled my eyes at him. Even with an erased memory, he was still same old, same old Dimitri that I had known and loved.

I just sighed; the sound of it indicated some of my irritation.

I could feel that Dimitri was thinking something out. I wanted to help.

"Dammit, I hate feeling helpless." I hissed. "Give me something to do. If you want me to kill that infiltrator, I will. Just tell me where he is, and I'll bash his brains for you."

He looked at me, a bored expression on his face, but I knew too well what was going on with his mind. "It is not that easy—" His speech was interrupted by something loud again. It was louder than the one we had heard before.

I loathed and resented everything that was loud, so it made it hard not to scream at the moment. I thought about really doing it, but before I could, Dimitri and I were on the ground covered with white fluffs of snow. I saw from the tree where we were standing at was effusing smoke a little.

"What the—" Dimitri covered my mouth so it covered the next nasty words I was about to say.

"Stop talking." He told me and inched me away from the tree. I was more than a little irritated at how slow he moved, so I started to crawl, but his words made me froze. "Sniper,"

I stilled on my place, barely breathing.

"Don't move, not yet."

I did what he said.

The world seemed to take on a fast forward mode then. The first thing I knew was that I was on my knees on the snowy ground, not moving, but the next thing was just horrifying.

Dimitri shouted at me to jump up and move away from my place fast.

To my complete disbelief and horror, I wasn't able to respond on time. Dimitri threw his body on top of me just before the next shot was heard. It was louder than the last two, if that was even possible.

Dimitri made a heavy grunting sound behind me, and rolled off of me. I looked at him and saw that he was clutching the side of his stomach. And his hands were covered with something red. Blood.

"Oh my God," I gasped and half-dragged Dimitri to a secluded place just behind some groves. "Dimitri,"

He groaned and strained to open his eyes. His dark eyes—for the first time—were filled with something. Normally, I would have been glad to see that he wasn't stoic anymore, but what he was feeling wasn't a pleasant one. His eyes weren't filled with love like he usually does when he stares at me, it wasn't concern too.

It was pain. But even with that pain, he said, "I don't know your name."

I gave him a watery smile. "My name is Rose. Rose Hathaway."

He grunted and I swear I saw him smile before we heard a gunshot again. The sound wasn't like the others I have heard; they were calming and reassuring in a way. With that, I knew that the place was safe from infiltrators but I can never be so sure.

I would have asked for help, but there was no time. I took off Dimitri's duster and shirt, but thought better about it because the ground we were on was cold. I decided not to push my unbearably unlucky luck, and stood up. Before I could even take one forward, Dimitri's hand caught mine.

"Stay with me," he said in a weak voice.

"No, I have to go get some help!"

"No, I can't risk your life for mine." He told me and tightened his hold on my hand.

"And I can't risk your life for mine." I told him. Despite our present situation, the sarcasm on my voice was thick and it sickened me. "I won't be risking my life, it's safe already."

He strained to open his eyes and look at me with an intensity that I didn't know he had since he left. "At least take my shirt off."

I almost gaped at him. "But it's cold,"

"I'm immune to the cold," he told me in a sure voice; despite the look he was giving me.

"No, I'm not going to." I folded my arms across my chest to look defiant.

His eyes turned pleading for a second. "Please, Rose,"

Those words hit me like cold water. I gave in to him and took his shirt off. Well, I tore his shirt off, because he was too heavy for me to baby around.

"Wipe the wound clean, Rose." I looked up at him. "Please," he said, and his eyes… oh, the look on his eyes could make me do anything. I did what he told me, and he started slipping away from consciousness.

I shook him awake. "You are _not_ sleeping on me, Dimitri!"

He grinned at me a small, pained grin. "Sleeping is for slackers. I'm just simply closing my eyes." He lifted his hand to my face where a single tear had escaped. I hadn't noticed that I was crying then. "You're crying. Why is that?"

_Could he be more clueless?_

"I'm sorry, I did this to you." I half-sobbed and bowed my head, while I stood up again.

"You blame yourself for my minor injury?" he asked me with a curious but pained glint on his eyes. I nodded. "Do not,"

Just those two words, it nearly broke my heart. I knew full well that I did this. Not only why he got shot, but… _this_. Just _this_.

I didn't respond to him, but just ran for help.

I knew why I was feeling so guilt-driven now. It just wasn't me who left a heart.

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**Poor Dimitri. Tsk, tsk, tsk.**

**I hope you liked this chapter. Leave a review, my **_**cara**_**.**

**Love lots,**

**Kate :D**

**xx**


	15. Wake Me up When December Ends

**Damn, I'm embarrassed to be updating just now. It has been almost a year that I hadn't updated, so y'all have every right to be mad at me. I have just been trying to refresh my brain for BS after I'd done several updates on my other story. Working on two stories at the same time really sucks, but that's not any reason for me not updating for almost a year. I am so, so sorry. ;(**

**There's gonna be a surprise in this chapter… ENJOY!**

**I heard this quote from an episode in Spongebob Squarepants and I couldn't help but post it here: **_**Love is handing someone a gun **__**and letting it point to your head, believing that he won't pull the trigger.**_

**Oh, and PLEASE read my other story "When Lightning Strikes!"**

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**Chapter Fifteen**

**Wake Me up When December Ends**

**DPOV  
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Consciousness.

I never realized how consciousness meant before she came along. Naturally, I would have welcomed those black lights of oblivion, but just at the sight of her tears—clear, beautiful tears—that ran down her cheeks altered my outlook of those dim lights of void. And with that outlook, it altered me as a whole man, too—dhampir or not.

Looking at her now, with my cognizance slipping away, I felt a pang inside my heart. I realized that I couldn't leave her. I couldn't leave her—not _again_. But now, here I was, breaking her heart with my careless words of reassurance. Or so I thought they were reassurance. She blamed herself to what happened to me, and…the way she looked at me it was as if she had known me forever. It irked me to know that I felt the same way about her too, but I just didn't know why…

Maybe the gunshot was making me delirious.

The tough dhampir that I had just met an hour ago became something else. Something wonderful, but that was an understatement. She was so… I don't know—_perfect_? Beautiful? And yet, I felt a faint wave of prohibition from this beautiful stranger.

_Rose_, I told myself while fighting off the drowsiness I felt. _Her name is Rose._

The last thing on my mind before I slipped into oblivion was how Rose and the girl in the painting I saw before resembled.

**~o~oo~o~**

"—stubborn. Let me check your arm."

The words drifted in like wind. There was a sound of heavy cloth rustling. It probably was the expensive draperies my brother opts to buy, I thought.

Maxim had always prided himself in being mature and independent. He fancied things that never held the slightest interest to me. He liked animals, I didn't. We were total opposites, yet we were so much alike. It was amazing how genes can do that to people.

"I'm fine." The words were said stubbornly. "You don't have to baby me; it's your brother who got shot, not me."

A sigh came out not far from where I lay. "Rose, I've done already my best to soothe his pain, what more can I do for my brother? Now, let me check your arm—"

There was a long, feral hiss. "My arm, Maxim, is the least of your worries. There's a killer on lose out there, and I don't like feeling that I can't do anything. It makes me feel so fucking useless—and if you know me well enough, I _dislike _uselessness." The word was as potent as saying poison.

The girl, Rose, had this spunk in her that only few men could resist—and many succumb into. I, for one, could be one of those men who would succumb freely, yet I wondered how I would. Didn't I just establish that I was uninterested in women except for a few exceptions? Exceptions being my sisters and childhood friends.

Apparently, I did, but yet…Rose was different. She felt different.

No, I chastised myself. She is Maxim's, not mine.

A dull ache in my chest made itself known. The ache was a constant pain in the ass, but nothing I couldn't handle.

For now, anyway.

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**RPOV**

"No, Maxim, you _cannot_ begin to understand how lucky I feel to have you here."

"Has nobody ever told you before that your sarcasm can lead your life into jeopardy?" The last thing I expected from Maxim was a retort. And an impatient and half-angry one at that. But…given his situation that his brother just got shot from saving me inside his territory, it was understandable.

And Maxim's brother—Dimitri… it was still unbelievable, it was like saying a sea horse lives in land.

An invisible fist clenched around my heart, hurting me, tormenting me like it always had since the night of the near-massacre back at the Romanov Palace in Hobson. I tried to squelch the bad feeling, but it did little good to my reaction to Maxim's unprecedented snap.

"I think at this moment, it might be worth putting my life in jeopardy! Everyone's involved already! You, Dimitri, Abe, even the freaking human police and the Court!"

Maxim's answer was not what I had expected. I had expected a growl, or a "get out and commit suicide" but not this. He was composed, almost resigned. He sighed and leaned back on the wingback chair he was sitting for the last few hours on, a tired look set on his gorgeous features. The scar on his face seemed to become more noticeable with the look on his face.

Suddenly, I felt guilty. Not only for giving him a hard time, but guilty for bringing this to him—giving him these troubles I was bound to have.

Love, I knew, was hard. It was also damn blind. It was hate at first sight for Maxim and I but as time passed when we were together, we just clicked, and then we fell for each other in the most unexpected way. Yet…it wasn't enough.

"I never understood why I fell in love with you, Rose. Of all women, you turned out to be the woman who stole my heart…" His expression turned placid for a moment, and then his expression turned back to the tired, resigned Maxim. "But—despite your rash attitudes—all I want to do is fall down on my knees and thank the gods they gave you to me. I'm such a masochist."

My heart fluttered at his words. Nobody, not even Dimitri, has ever said those words to me. It made me frightened and yet so, so elated—it was absurd. I squelched my elation with words I never thought I'd say to anybody. "How the lies slip out of your tongue."

Once, Dimitri told me about my impulsiveness. He told me I always act without thinking and he righted some of those wrongs. That was one thing I loved about Dimitri—he calmed the storm raging inside me, replacing it with a docile one. In Dimitri's young years, he had been so, so wise it was no wonder his brother turned out to be the last living Royal Romanov Prince.

Romanov Prince, I repeated silently. The last Romanov Prince in love with a dhampir—in love with _me_. It was simply…preposterous.

Maxim's face turned stony, and I felt sick for doing that to him. Maxim has done nothing to deserve that kind of treatment from me, but I wanted him to let me go. I didn't want him to fall more in love with me.

I was saved from a loud knock on the door. Maxim stood up without a word to get it.

I closed my eyes and clenched my fists, sorting out my tangled nerves. The day had been emotionally and physically exhausting I wondered why I was even awake. Maxim had problems of his own and was trying his best to fix things and I was only making it worse for him, so I had to just keep my mouth shut. For now at least.

Okay, one problem solved, a thousand and three more to go.

I sighed and put my hands on my face and I dropped on the bed where Dimitri lay unconscious. I looked at him and put a hand on his leg protectively. I wasn't going to play helpless damsel now, I was going to fix this mess if it's the last thing I'll do. I'm going to get this murdered and beat up those infiltrators.

With resolve, I stood up from where I was just as Dimitri woke up.

"Hey," I said, my voice almost choked.

His shoulder-length hair was ruffled, making him look more gorgeous than he already was. His face was pale but all in all, he was a far-cry from the recently-shot Dimitri.

He looked up at me and I was surprised at the smile that tilted his lips. "Rose, you didn't leave." His voice was rough around the edges.

I smiled, my heart flying. "Of course I didn't, you big oaf." I told him and sat down beside him.

He grunted in pain and touched the gauze at the side of his stomach. "It hurts," he said it like it was foreign.

"Of course it does." I said put a hand on the gauze. "You took a bullet for me."

He didn't answer but he tried to sit up. With a grunt, he did. He didn't even need my help. Dhampirs could heal real fast—abnormally fast though. It has only been three hours since the shoot-out.

"Careful. Watch it, you have stitches."

"Stitches?" he asked, and then took off the gauze to peek at his wound.

"You're insane!" I almost shouted when he stripped the sheet of white cloth away from him. What I saw there wasn't what I expected. I expected stitches like those nasty ones I always get, but this wasn't. There was no stitch nor was there a wound. The only thing covering his skin was a moderate-sized blue bruise to indicate that he had been shot.

"What the fuck?" I said and reached out for the bruise.

The expression on his face didn't give away any emotion. "It's healed."

"No shit?" I said just in time Maxim came back inside the room with a woman. Well, a Moroi woman. Just one look at her, I knew exactly who she was. Her heart-shaped face was haloed with long raven locks, and eyes as pale and wintry as Christian's. Right on her left cheek were purplish marks that marred her once-beautiful face. Marks that looked awfully like bites.

"Tasha Ozera, it's nice meeting you again." Tasha, I knew, was two years older than me. She had been a senior when I was in my sophomore year in the Academy. She had been one of those rare Moroi who opposed to living like walking steaks. She had made a group of Moroi who used their elemental magic as offense, straying the Queen's orders. I admired her for that.

Her eyes widened in surprise and delight. "Rose! Oh my God, I can't believe you're here!" she ran up to me and gave me a hug that surprised me from both her delight and strength. She was such a skinny thing I doubted she'd have squeezed the life out of me. But in fact, she did.

When she pulled back, her face turned serious. "I heard Dimka got shot, and I came here as fast as I could. I was just at Augsburg when I heard the human police were involved."

Human police again… and…_Dimka_? Have I heard that before?

"Yeah, human police…" I said, trailing off thoughtfully.

Tasha jumped on Dimitri, fussing. If I didn't know better, I thought Tasha was taking advantage on Dimitri's weakened state to sit on his lap and touch him. And yes, I did not know better. So…Tasha was into groping huh…

"Tasha," Dimitri said, smiling a little.

An odd flutter warned inside me that came close to being jealousy. My shoulders stiffened and I ad to exhale to let out the feeling. Well, not entirely all of it, but some of it.

"Dimka, are you alright? I thought you were going to die! I mean guns! They had guns; I was hysterical when I heard you were shot. Don't worry; they'll get the punishment they deserve…" Tasha was rambling; tears clear on her large blue eyes.

Dimitri almost rolled his eyes. Almost. He smiled at her, the smile reminding me of the one he gave me. The jealousy burst again.

"Hey, you don't need to cry, I'm fine. I'm tough, remember?" he told her, stroking her gorgeous raven hair.

I wanted to shout so badly that I cringed.

Tasha had once been a Moroi I admired and respected, but now, looking at her all going gaga over Dimitri—_my _Dimitri—it took all I had not to bang her upside her head.

Well, Dimitri wasn't technically _mine_ but…well…whatever.

Tasha had already turned up her waterworks and her head was buried on Dimitri's shoulder as she sobbed. Dimitri continued to stroke her hair and soothed her with his words.

I sighed and noted how many times I have sighed this day. I was jealous for certain, but I was glad that Dimitri was alright. It was a blow to my ego too that Dimitri had gotten himself a girl after me. ME!

Dimitri looked up from Tasha to me. I mustered up a smile. He mouthed "later" at me, and gave me one last small, almost unnoticeable, smile.

I looked away, not knowing what to do. He had dismissed me, alright, and I didn't like that one bit. Maybe Dimitri's feelings for me were gone. Maybe he really did forget about me. Maybe Xander's compulsion was strong enough to even erase those feelings buried in him. With a nod at him, I turned my back on him, not wanting to see the two of them together.

A hand landed on my shoulder. I knew it was Maxim before he spoke.

"Rose, we need to talk." His words were brisk and formal, no warmth applied like before.

Again, I sighed for the hundredth time and followed him outside to the corridor.

As soon as the door closed behind us, he locked me in place, his arms on either side of the wall I was leaning on. He pressed a long, slow kiss on my lips. I relaxed a little and it vexed me to realize that he had this effect on me.

He broke the kiss and leaned to kiss my forehead, murmuring, "Let it go, Rose." quietly.

With a choked cry, tears welled up my eyes and I vowed to myself that this will be the last time I would cry. It took time for me to collect my wits, but eventually, I did. Maxim just stayed by my side the whole time I broke down. He didn't murmur any soothing words, but his presence enough. He was so like Dimitri in many ways, yet they were different. That realization made me cry more, but about ten minutes passed, I grew tired of crying and being helpless.

I stood up, a newfound determination rising up. I was going to solve this case, I was going to get Dimitri back, and nobody will stop me from doing what I want.

Maxim stood up with me and put a hand on my shoulder. "We have the infiltrators in one chamber. Accompany me?" he asked.

I nodded vigorously. "Of course."

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**Interrogation's in the next chapter. Let's hope I can update soon.**

**From Kate with LOVE!**

**REVIEWS GALORE PLEASE!**


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